One Heck of a Year
by Hermionegirl4ever
Summary: Takes place after Harry's 5th year. Harry's year is full of dreadful attacks. Comforted only by his newly found relatives, he struggles to survive his 6th year at Hogwarts. Will he be able to defeat the Dark Lord? Chapter 10 is up!
1. Helpless

**Hey guys! This is only my second fanfic so it might not be as good as I want it to, but I still like the plot. R&R please, I really want to know what you think of the story. Hope you like it!**

Chapter 1

Helpless

Harry was lying on his bed; it was a cold night, the Dursleys left him with an open window he could not close, and he did not eat anything in the past two days. Mrs. Figg would sneak in food when she came to visit, pretending to come to criticize the boy; if it wasn't for her, Harry would have probably died of hunger. The window would shock Harry every time he tried to open or close it (to prevent him from escaping), and Vernon purposely left the window open, Harry having no blanket. They had a remote that would turn the shock device off whenever they wanted to touch the window, but they never forgot to turn it back on when they left the room. Well, Vernon never forgot. Petunia would sometimes leave it open, acting as if she forgot, but she only did this when Vernon didn't notice.

The Dursleys were visiting Aunt Marge this weekend; Marge insisted that they left Harry at home, and so they did. Having left Harry without food, water, or a blanket to keep him warm, Harry would not help but think that this was Vernon's attempt to kill him. He didn't mind that though-that way he'll be with Sirius and his parents again.

He lay curled up on his bed, hoping to gain some warmth, when he heard a crash down in the kitchen. He say bolt up, listening closely.

He had his wand with him, but did not want to get in trouble for using magic again. He wondered whether it was members of the Order coming to save him, but he negated that thought right away. It was only the fifth week of summer and the Order gave him no notice of their arrival; he got out his wand from under his pillow and waited.

'They just _had_ to lock my door, because I would **definitely **run away the second they leave…Aunt Petunia _knows_ I can't do that! Not that she would mind me leav--'

Another crash and many loud cracks caught his attention. If this were the Order they wouldn't have made this much noise; even Tonks isn't_ that_ clumsy.

Harry was starting to panic; he didn't want tot use magic if it wasn't necessary, but he didn't want to be caught off guard either. He didn't know what to do, and before he had time to think of something, the door flung open and in front of him stood no less than 10 Death Eaters, who didn't even bother to wear their dreadful masks.

Harry immediately raised his wand, but Lestrange was too quick for him; she Stunned him and laughed her evil laugh.

"So, we meet again Potter…I bet this is a **wonderful** surprise for you. Did you really think we would let you live after what happened in the Ministry? Don't be foolish!" The other Death Eaters were laughing now.

"_Portus_," Lestrange uttered, pointing her wand at a piece of parchment she found on the floor.

"There we go…now, Potter, we're going for a trip; when we arrive…oh, let's just say it will be fun."

She grabbed Harry rather harshly by the collar of his shirt, forcing him to stand up. Harry was still Stunned, and as much as he wanted to, could do nothing to stop her.

She thrust the parchment into his hand while holding on to it. They both disappeared leaving behind them a room full of laughing Death Eaters.

Back in Dumbledore's office, certain Order members were discussing when they should get Harry from his Aunt and Uncle.

"Albus, I really don't think he needs to stay there any longer. It's dangerous everywhere nowadays, he would be safer at Hogwarts," McGonagall tried to convince him.

"I completely agree, Minerva, especially considering that he is--"

"Albus, he needs the protection!" Moody started, "He has special wards there and he is protected by the most powerful spells!" '_Constant vigilance_,' he thought to himself.

"Alastor, we understand he is well protected, no one is denying that; but that magic only prevents someone from hurting him while inside the house, it doesn't prevent Death Eaters attacking while wandering outside at night, or luring him out of the house and then kidnapping him," Lupin said, worry etched on his face.

Dumbledore's expression became grave and serious. "I'm afraid that Harry isn't allowed outside. Arbella Figg "got friendly" with Petunia Dursley and found out that they locked Harry in his room with no food and they put a shocking device on his window and door that only they can control. Arbella has been sneaking him food once in a while, but unless he uses magic, which I doubt he will try, he can't exactly go anywhere."

"They WHAT?" stormed Molly Weasley, "Albus, do you want him to starve to death? We need to get him out of there!"

"I know we do, I want him out of there just as much as you do, but it's not that simple."

"What's there not to be simple? We'll arrange a guard like we did last summer; that worked out ok," Shacklebolt reminded them.

"Yes, it did, but I don't know if it will work out this time; we just can't risk an attack," Dumbledore explained.

"Albus, I don't care what we can or can't risk right now, I want him out of there immediately!" Lupin exclaimed. He lost Sirius last year, who was much like a brother to him. He would not lose Harry as well, who was very much like a son. He exchanged a significant look with Tonks—they were, after all, thinking of adopting Harry at the end of the year.

"I agree with Remus, Albus," Arthur Weasley broke out of his silence.

"Who's with me?" Lupin asked, while he truly hoped that Dumbledore would support him.

Arthur and Molly Weasley, Tonks, and Kingsley Shacklebolt all stepped forward; Alastor Moody hesitated, but stepped forward also. McGonagall remained in her place, looking questioningly at Dumbledore; she would never disobey his orders. Dumbledore smiled at his loyal headmistress and said, "Well, what are we waiting for?" Together as one, they all Disapparated to Number 4, Privet Drive.


	2. Order to the Rescue

**Hey guys, I hope you liked the first chapter. It gets better, I promise. But then again, it depends on what definition you have for better (muahahaha)**

**Please R&R, my other story (which is my favorite of the two) doesn't get that many reviews, so please review for this one (and read my other one!). Enjoy!**

Chapter 2

Order to the Rescue

They all arrived at Number Four, Privet Drive, at once. The place seemed deserted, and this couldn't be good.

"Albus, I don't like this one bit," Lupin and Molly said as one.

"And neither do I," Dumbledore answered, worry and fear obvious in his voice; he tried to keep a calm face and smiled at everyone encouragingly, "but I'm sure everything is fine." McGonagall knew Albus too well to believe that; the others, however, seemed soothed, and started walking towards the door, when all of a sudden Arbella Figg came running out of the Dursleys' house.

"Albus! Thank God!" she hurried over to him trying to catch her breath; running down the stairs and out the door was a lot for someone her age, after all.

"Merlin's beard, are you all right Arbella?" Albus was alarmed now.

"Albus, the boy, they took him! His family left for the weekend, and I heard cracks of Apparition because the kitchen window was open; by the time I got there, the boy was gone!"

McGonagall looked as if she were Stunned; Molly started crying, as Arthur hurried over to comfort her; Lupin was holding Tonks tightly in his arms, while Moody and Shacklebolt both had their wands out at the ready; Dumbledore hurried over to McGonagall and put his arm around her waist. He will not let any Death Eater harm his princess, and right now, he needed his princess as close to him as possible.

"Was Harry's window open? Did you hear anything?" Dumbledore asked urgently.

"Oh yes, I could hear everything; Harry was freezing, I imagine he was freezing to death. This woman cast some spell on him before he could react; he fell to the floor and couldn't move. Then she said something like "portious" or "portsi" and took the boy, and then the rest of the Disapparated. I think I heard them talking about Azkaban last time they were here, but I'm not sure," she finished, hoping this information would be enough to track the boy down.

They were all shocked; finally, Moody grunted, "Last time! What last time!"

"Well, it was about two days ago, two of them were on brooms, and they cast some spell through the open window when the boy had his back turned on them…sounded like Croosho to me, but I have no idea; the boy started twitching and after a long while he passed out. Then his Aunt came in the room so the two Disapparated while on their brooms. His Uncle came in the room and yelled at him for making noise. Obviously the boy couldn't hear him, and when his Uncle saw that he was unconscious, he _smiled_to himself and _left _the room, Petunia **following** him. Harry woke up two minutes later, and though I could tell his body ached, he didn't seem to know what happened so he went to bed."

"Arbella, why didn't you let me know this happened!" Dumbledore roared; he was furious.

"I'm sorry Albus, but I couldn't find a way to contact you! Mundungus hasn't showed up in 4 days and I didn't know how to let you know! But the boy seemed fine, really!"

"Oh, I'll take care of Mundungus all right," Dumbledore said coldly.

"The question is, what do we do now?" McGonagall asked Dumbledore. She cared for Harry as though he was her own son, and was afraid to think of what state he would be in if they didn't hurry.

"We need to go to Azkaban, that's what we need to do!" Moody said, and murmurs of agreement were heard.

"Very well; thank you Arbella, I'll let you know as soon as we find Harry." '_If we find him_,' he thought to himself.

Once again, they all Disapparated.

Thousands of miles away, Harry was locked up in a cell in Azkaban. A dozen Dementors were guarding his cell, and he had no chance of fighting them off since Lestrange took his wand. The rest of Azkaban was deserted, since everyone escaped during the summer. He felt drained, worthless and pathetic, and wished she would have killed him rather than bring him here; he already re-lived his worst childhood memories in addition to seeing Cedric and Sirius die over and over again; he no longer had the memories of winning the Quidditch Cup, his friends at Hogwarts, Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons with Lupin, or any other happy memories he used to have; at least, if he had them, he didn't know where they were. He was still sane…just not able to put up a fight.

Suddenly, the door at the beginning of the long hallway in which the cells were located burst open. It was Lestrange and Malfoy; Malfoy ordered the Dementors away, and they both stepped forward.

"Well, well, well! If it isn't The Chosen One, wand-less and overpowered…not so brave without old Dumbledore at your side, are you now?" Malfoy sneered.

Lestrange added playfully, "We're going to play a little game now…how 'bout 'how many times we can hit Potty with Cruciatus' game?" she asked Malfoy.

"Oooh, my favorite! How did you know?" he grinned maliciously.

"Wild guess," she smiled back at him.

"Crucio!" she bellowed.

"Crucio!" she had her want pointed at Harry again, and left the curse on him for a longer time. When she got to ten, they switched, and Malfoy did the same thing. When he reached 20 times, they switched again. And so it went on, ten by ten, that they tortured Harry.

Harry did not know how much longer he could endure this. At first he tried not to scream, not to give any indicated that he was hurt; after the second time, though, he could not bear the pain anymore. It was pain beyond anything else, seemed worse than when Voldemort did it to him in his 4th year; and with every one of those times that the curse was cast on him, it was for a longer time, and if possible, even more painful.

After what seemed like hours, they reached 130 times. Harry was barely alive at this point, but Lestrange and Malfoy were having too much fun; it was like a dream come true to them.

"Bella, we don't want to kill him; Master told us to keep him alive."

"Oh, he'll be alive, Lucius," she replied happily, after reaching the number 140. "I'll let him rest for a minute and then you can keep going."

Harry was relieved. He gathered up all the energy he had left in him and tried to come up with a plan. Thoughts were rushing through his mind; he tried to think of some way, _any_ way, in which he could contact the Order and let them know where he is. Before he could come up with any ideas, Malfoy said in a sweet, almost-Umbridge-like voice, "Time's up!" and started with the Cruciatus again.

They reached 200, and Harry was losing consciousness. He was falling into a long, black tunnel with no end, his body still twitching violently…

_Crack_

"What was that?" Lestrange asked, turning to face the door.

"Probably Crabbe and Goyle, they said they would join us for the party," Malfoy said, sniggering.

"Aww, but it's no fun doing this when he's not awake. Wake him up!" she cried in a baby-ish tone.

Malfoy mumbled something, and Harry was now barely awake, but enough to feel his body aching again. He was bleeding badly; he felt as if his bones were all cracked in half, as if there was no blood left inside of him anymore. And yet, they kept going.

"Potty, you're going to be a world record now…we're going for 300 times with the Cruciatus, and we're already at 210. What was your record, Bella, 250?" She nodded at him, proud of her accomplishment. "Well, then, look at the bright side, Potter, you're more than half way there!" Malfoy sneered at him. "Crucio!"

Outside, the door, Dumbledore, McGonagall, Lupin, Tonks, Molly, Arthur, Moody, and Shacklebolt were listening closely.

"Shh, listen!" Molly said, hushing them up, even though no one was talking.

"Potty, you're going to be a world record now…we're going for 300 times with the Cruciatus, and we're already at 210. What was your record, Bella, 250?" She nodded at him, proud of her accomplishment. "Well, then, look at the bright side, Potter, you're more than half way there!" Malfoy sneered at him. "Crucio!"

And then they heard a scream. It wasn't a scream of fear, or of pain. It was of a 16 year old boy who was wishing to simply die.

"They used the Cruciatus on him over 200 times, Albus!" Molly cried, burying her face into Arthur's shoulder. McGonagall too was crying, Albus was hugging her comfortingly. Lupin and Tonks looked at each other, shocked; Moody said, "I'm surprised he's not dead!"

"He will be if we don't do something about it," hissed Shacklebolt.

Then they heard Lestrange ask, "Where are Crabbe and Goyle? I thought you said they were on their way here!" Malfoy shrugged. "Oh well…here comes 230," she continued.

"Crucio!" she screamed, flicking her wand again.

Dumbledore, followed by the rest, pushed the door open so that it banged with the wall.

Malfoy and Lestrange turned, and a smile appeared on both of their faces.

"Dumbledore…and his groupie…somehow, I expected you to come sooner or later…though I was hoping later, you know, for the burial."

"The only burial will be yours, Malfoy," hissed McGonagall, though she didn't seem so sure of herself. Harry was in a pretty bad state.

"Is that so? Oh, we shall see about that…Crucio!" both Malfoy and Lestrange roared, pointing their wands at Harry again.

The relief that rushed through him when he saw Order members come in disappeared at that second. He screamed, as loud as he could with what energy he had left in him. He wanted it to end, he'd had enough; he wanted to die, he would do it himself I he only had his wand…but then he fell into that long, black tunnel again.

"Harry!" Dumbledore, McGonagall, Lupin, and Molly cried; the rest of them were speechless.

Dumbledore rushed forward, but as soon as he made his first step, Malfoy kicked Harry hard in the stomach; every single inch of his body was now covered in blood, and Malfoy's kick brought him back to consciousness.

"One more step, and this kid goes bye-bye," he said malevolently.

"Dumbledore…leave…worry…me…fine…" Harry tried to say. They needed to leave, if any of them got killed tonight, it would be his fault again. He didn't care what happened to him anymore, as long as the others were safe.

"Fine? Fine, you say? I'll show you fine, boy!"

He kicked and punched Harry, who didn't respond to pain anymore. Lestrange cast the Cruciatus on him once more.

"Don't think we went nice on you," he turned to the Order, "the only reason why we're not attacking is because we have no chance against all of you…but you're welcome to stay and watch."

They couldn't fire Killing Curses at the two Death Eaters—they can't risk hitting Harry—but they had to do something, or Harry would soon be dead, if he wasn't already.

"Stupify!" all eight of them bellowed. Unfortunately, all of them pointed their wands at Malfoy. He was unconscious now, having been hit by eight Stunning curses at once. Lestrange made to grab Harry and Disapparate, but Lupin quickly Stunned her before she could reach Harry.

They all hurried over towards Harry, who was no longer breathing.


	3. Ruined Plans for Both Sides

**Hey guys! Hope you liked the first two chapters of this story…I have the 4th chapter written, I'm in the process of editing it. It will probably be up in a couple of days, if not tonight, so keep checking! **

**Please R&R, I really love getting reviews.**

Chapter 3

Ruined Plans for Both Sides

"Harry! Harry, wake up! Please wake up!" Molly Weasley cried in panic. McGonagall was crying over Harry's body, when all of a sudden Lupin Disapparated. Two minutes later, he reappeared with Madame Pomfrey to his left.

"Oh my goodness! Move, let me see him!" she half yelled, half ordered them. No one dared to do otherwise.

The moment she saw Harry, she gasped. She concentrated hard and fast, no time was to be lost. She whispered a complex incantation, while the others stood silently and watched her work.

Harry's eyes slowly opened. He looked around at them, frightened. His glasses fell off last time he passed out, and all he could see was a bunch of blurry figures crouching over him.

"No…no, please…just kill me, don't hurt me again…please, kill me…" Harry was crying, his body aching. He needed his wand so that he could end it himself…

Then he felt someone hug him. He didn't know who it was, but it made him stop crying.

"Harry…it's ok…it's over…shhh, you're safe now…" He then realized this was McGonagall's voice.

"P-P-Professor? No! Leave, you need to leave!"

"Don't be stupid Harry, we're not leaving without you!" Tonks said, trying to cheer him up, but concern was obvious in her voice.

"No…believe me... more coming…hurt...leave…"

And with those words being said, some 20 other Death Eaters appeared, surrounding he Order members and Harry. Moody grabbed Harry's wand and put it in his pocket, while the others stood in a circle around Harry, protecting him.

"Oh, what a surprise! Bella and Lucius Stunned, and Dumbledore came to save his favorite boy! Too bad you came here for nothing, you old fool! Expeliarmus!" he yelled at Kingsley, who wasn't expecting the spell. Kingsley blasted towards the door and ended up hitting the wall, his wand going outside the door.

"Avada Kedavra!" Mcnair bellowed, pointing his wand at Harry, who was now standing up and facing Mcnair. The jet missed Harry's face by inches, and that was only because he slightly moved…as much as he could move in his condition. The others stumbled backwards, avoiding the jet of green light. Harry was now unconscious again, and saw no more of this.

At once Dumbledore and McGonagall grabbed Harry, holding him tightly by the arms, and Disapparated. Kingsley hurried and got his wand, and the group Disapparated seconds later, their eyes wide with fear.

They arrived outside Hogwarts grounds in no time. Dumbledore made sure that no one was in their way and levitated Harry to the hospital wing as quickly as humanly possible. He then slowly placed Harry on one of the beds and let Madame Pomfrey take care of him.

Lupin, Tonks, Molly, and Arthur stayed with Harry, while McGonagall, Dumbledore, Moody, and Shacklebolt went out the door and closed it behind them.

"Do you think he will be all right, Albus?' McGonagall asked worriedly.

"I don't know Minerva, 230 times with the Cruciatus is not something easy to survive. I expect the only reason he is sane, or even alive, is because they didn't use their most powerful curses. They didn't intend to kill him, and they made sure to keep him alive while torturing him with the exact amount of pain he can handle without dying. I don't know if he will ever be the same after this," he finished, his face grave and tears dropping down his face.

After a long silence, Moody and Shacklebolt finally said, "We have to go to the Ministry, do you want us to let everyone know this happened?"

"No, I would appreciate it if you didn't…it will only create chaos and I doubt Harry wants nor needs more attention."

"All right Albus, we won't say a word. By the way, here's his wand," Moody said, handing it over to Dumbledore. "Keep us updated."

And with that, they turned to leave.

McGonagall was in tears. Dumbledore embraced her in a hug, drying her tears with the back of his hands.

"Albus…what if he doesn't get through this? What if Poppy can't help him? He…Albus, I can't lose him! Sometimes I just want to mother him to death…I need him, Albus!"

"Shh, it's ok Minerva. Everything is going to be all right. I'm sure Poppy will be able to do something for him. I promise you everything will work out." Though McGonagall couldn't help but notice that Dumbledore didn't seem sure of himself.

"And…Minerva?"

"Yes, Albus?"

"Harry wouldn't mind if you 'mother him to death'. I'm sure of that. He _needs_ that, if nothing else."

"Oh, Albus! I just hope Harry survives this…" she started crying again.

Albus embraced her in another hug, but this time he didn't let go; they stood there, crying in each other's arms. Though Dumbledore assured McGonagall everything would be ok, he didn't think he convinced her; he didn't even manage to convince himself.

Back in Azkaban Voldemort was furious with Lucius, Bellatrix, Mcnair, Crabbe, and Goyle.

"Mcnair! You had the boy lying there, wand-less, and you couldn't kill him?" he scowled at him.

"I'm sorry Master, but my aim wasn't so good and the loving old fool and his helper grabbed the boy and Apparated away!"

"Very well…don't ever do that again, Mcnair. You're lucky I'm feeling forgiving today."

"No sir; never sir."

"Crabbe. Goyle; you were supposed to be there, where were you two?" Voldemort inquired.

"We're truly sorry, Master, we were dealing with muggles…. filthy pieces of scum, thought they could stand where we wanted to stand!"

"You ruined my plans, but you managed to pay me back for your imbecile-like behavior. You will not be punished tonight."

"Thank you, Master."

"Be warned, I will not be so forgiving next time."

"No sir, there won't be a next time."

"That's the spirit! Now, Bellatrix, Lucius—what have you got to say to defend yourselves?"

"My Lord, they Stunned us, we could do nothing…but we used the Cruciatus on him 230 something times!" Lucius explained, satisfied with their achievements.

"Oh. Very good! Excellent, in fact!" The other Death Eaters were amazed at his reaction. "Now all we have to do is figure out how to attack him while he's still weak…it will take him quite a while to recover…excellent!"

Lucius and Bellatrix were shocked at how easily they got out of punishment, but did not dare complain.

It was now morning. Tonks had to leave for work, and Lupin was to go to the Dursleys to collect Harry's possessions. Molly and Arthur left for the Burrow to deliver the news to the kids and Hermione. Dumbledore and McGonagall took shifts in watching Harry all night, and now they are both resting on beds next to Harry's.

When they woke up, Madame Pomfrey was making Harry drink a Healing Potion. It was more like forcing it down his throat, since he wasn't conscious.

"How is he doing?" Dumbledore asked her.

"Not so good…he's still unconscious and it doesn't look like he's responding to the potion; I've done everything I can do for him," she answered sadly.

Tears appeared in both Dumbledore and McGonagall's eyes; they told Poppy to let them know if something happens, and left to eat breakfast. They made hourly visits on Harry, but he was still unconscious every time they came by.

And so that was a daily routine for them—Dumbledore and McGonagall would spend the night next to Harry and would visit him every hour during the day. The Weasleys visited three times a week, and Lupin and Tonks came every day, in the morning and at night. The term was starting in a week, but Harry was still unconscious and showed no progress in healing. They were all starting to lose hope.

"Albus, what are we going to do? The students are going to ask where Harry is, he will be missing classes and the other teachers will want to know what happened….and what if there's another attack?" McGonagall contemplated, more to herself.

"Minerva…everything will--"

"No, Albus! Don't tell me everything will be ok, because it won't! Harry has been unconscious for almost a month now, what if he never wakes up? What if the Death Eaters find a way to attack him while in Hogwarts? We can't keep him in a bubble; there is no way we can have someone guarding him at all times! How are we going to protect him?" she finished almost in tears. The feeling of hopelessness was making its effect on her.

"Minerva, listen to me; Harry **will **get through this. Whether be it tomorrow or in a month, he's going to wake up, and then he's going to play Quidditch and go to Hogsmeade and do the normal stuff he usually does. Until then, all we can do is hope for the best. If Harry doesn't wake up until the term starts, I will let everyone know what happened. I promise you that I will do anything I can to protect him. I love him as much as you do, I won't let anything happen to him. I'm going to have people tailing him while outside at Hogwarts, I will always know where he is, though he might not like that idea. Holidays might be a problem, but I'm sure Molly can keep an eye on him. He may not be a child anymore, but he's still my Harry; he's a grandson to me, and I'm sure he's the same to you. We're going to do everything we can. Everything is going to be ok," he smiled at her. He kissed her lightly on the lips, and together they went to breakfast.

That afternoon the Weasleys and Hermione decided to visit Harry. They flooed themselves to the Hogwarts hospital wing and went over to Harry's bed.

"Has he woken up yet?" Ginny asked Madam Pomfrey.

"No, he hasn't," she replied, "but I'm sure he'll be up by the time school starts," she added; she didn't want to depress the kids with the news…at least not yet.

"Do you reckon he will?" Ron asked Hermione.

"Of course he will! He's been unconscious for a month now; he can't be unconscious for much longer!" Ron couldn't help but notice that Hermione, like everyone else, didn't seem so sure of herself.

The last week of summer went by alarmingly fast; soon they were facing the night before the term started, and Harry was still unconscious.


	4. Not Again!

Chapter 4

Not Again!

Once again, Order members gathered in Dumbledore's office; this time, however, they were discussing a slightly different matter.

"What are you going to do, Albus?" Lupin asked.

"Well, the only thing I can do—tell the truth; lying won't do me any good."

"Maybe not, but telling the truth isn't much better in this case," grunted Moody.

"Albus, do you really think Harry would want this? It will only cause more people to talk about him; you know how much he hates that!" Molly Weasley said indignantly.

"Don't attack him he's only doing what he thinks is best for Harry!" McGonagall defended him.

"No, no, Minerva, it's quite all right; but my word is final, there is nothing more to discuss," Dumbledore said, in a tone that clearly meant the meeting was over.

Defeated, they flooed back home, while Dumbledore and McGonagall went to visit Harry.

Not to their surprise, Harry wasn't awake. They each say on opposite sides of Harry's bed, and watched him. Suddenly, McGonagall noticed something strange.

"Albus, look! His face is wet! He's…he's crying! But that means…Albus, he's conscious again!" she looked at Dumbledore, grinning. Dumbledore's eyes were watery; Dumbledore obviously got very emotional this past month.

Suddenly, Harry grabbed McGonagall's wrist. Harry knew McGonagall and Dumbledore were both there, he could hear their voices; but when he tried to open his eyes, the light stung him. Dumbledore noticed, and dimmed the lights; Harry slowly and cautiously opened his eyes.

He saw two figures crouching over his bed whom he knew to be Dumbledore and McGonagall. Dumbledore put his glasses on him, and then Harry realized that both Dumbledore and McGonagall seemed very concerned. He didn't want them to worry about him; he caused enough trouble as it is, he put them all in danger; he didn't deserve to have someone worrying about him. He smiled at them weakly, and they grinned back at him.

"How are you feeling?" McGonagall asked him.

"I'm ok…but I need to go check on the Dursleys, I need to see if they're ok," he said, and tried to get up. Dumbledore and McGonagall both put a hand on his chest and gently pushed him back down.

"You're not going anywhere in this state, you can barely walk…but you have nothing to worry about, your family got back home safely," McGonagall said. "And don't tell me you're ok, how are you _really_ feeling?" she added.

"I'm…I've been better…" he answered, barely able to breathe.

"Yes, of course you have! 230 times with the Cruciatus, that's insane! You gave us quite a scare!" McGonagall said sorrowfully.

"I'm so sorry…I…didn't mean to…should have fought them….or something…sorry…" he managed to say half sentences, and then diverted his look away from them down to his hands.

"Harry, what are you saying? No one's blaming you-- how could we? There was nothing you could have done," Dumbledore said gently.

"I felt so…helpless…should have tried to duel…but I just let them--" he broke off mid-sentence; he suddenly turned very pale and could not breathe. His heart was beating faster, hammering rapidly.

"Albus, what's happening to him? Poppy! Poppy, get over here!" McGonagall called urgently, but Poppy was nowhere to be seen.

"AAAAAHHHHH!" Harry screamed, panting. Dumbledore and McGonagall didn't know if this was out of pain or fright, but whatever it was, they didn't like it; nevertheless, they couldn't do anything about it. Dumbledore conjured a Patronus over to Madame Pomfrey, and quickly went over to Harry's side again; Harry seemed as if he was sleeping, since his eyes were closed, though his loud screams indicated that he was indeed awake. All of a sudden, Harry stopped screaming.

"No! Go away! Get out!" Harry yelled in agony.

Inside his mind, Harry was panicking. Voldemort had gotten access to his mind, his defenses being so low.

"Harry Potter, in the Hogwarts hospital wing?" Voldemort sneered, "What a pleasant surprise! What, you didn't like the little surprise _I_ had for you? It's only too…_unfortunate_ that I didn't encounter you earlier…Crucio!"

"Not again," Harry thought to himself, his body aching like no other; however, he found himself speaking aloud, and realized that this _is_ his mind, and Voldemort would hear all of his thoughts as if they were spoken.

"Not again? Why, how could you say that? We're having so much…_fun_…"

"No! Go away! Get out!" Harry yelled in agony.

"No, I don't think I will," Voldemort hissed. "Crucio!" he bellowed.

Harry screamed in agony again. He had just woken up from being unconscious for who knows how long, and now he's being attacked again. He wondered how much more of this he would have to endure.

"Oh, this is just the beginning…I don't intend on leaving any time soon," Voldemort said cheerfully.

"Please, kill me…don't hurt me, just kill me!" Harry pleaded.

"Believe me, Potter, if I could kill you I would…but unfortunately, it is impossible to kill someone by simply being inside his mind. I'm still going to have my fun entertainment though…Crucio!"

Harry screamed once more. There was only one thing to do, and though he didn't know if it would work, he had to try. He felt his mind drifting into blackness and knew he had to act quickly.

"Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, if you can hear me grab my wrist!" he said, not knowing if his plan would work.

"No! What are you doing, boy! Trying to escape, eh?" Voldemort laughed, "Crucio!" he roared. Harry screamed again, but he suddenly felt a hand gripping his hand, and that soothed him. He felt himself shaking uncontrollably, but continued nonetheless.

"Please, if you can hear me, get help! Voldemort is inside my mind, he's attacking me with the Cruc—AHHHHHHHH!" Voldemort had attacked him again. He tried to fight the unconsciousness that was slowly taking over him- he didn't want to be unconscious while Voldemort was still in his mind- but no matter how much he tried to resist, he couldn't stay awake any longer. At that second before he completely passed out, he heard Voldemort say, "See you soon, Potter," and that was all he witnessed.

Back in the hospital wing, Dumbledore and McGonagall were terrified.

"Please, kill me…don't hurt me, just kill me!" they heard Harry shout. It was almost as if he was talking in his sleep, only his voice indicated pain.

"Albus, what do we do? What's going on? And where in Merlin's beard is Poppy!" McGonagall bombarded questions, frustrated.

Then they heard Harry scream again.

"Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, if you can hear me grab my wrist!" Harry said.

He then started screaming in pain once more, and McGonagall quickly grabbed his wrist, not only because Harry asked them to, but because she wanted to soothe him, to help him in any way she could. She felt Harry shaking, and held his hand now, even tighter.

"Please, if you can hear me, get help! Voldemort is inside my mind, he's attacking me with the Cruc—AHHHHHHH!"

Dumbledore and McGonagall exchanged a quick significant look, worry and tears present in both of their eyes.

Dumbledore, who was leaning over Harry, started whispering an incantation in Latin. The spell was more powerful than simple Occlumency, yet he wasn't sure it would work; it was meant to block invasion of the mind, but not _literally_.

Slowly, Harry stopped shaking. His body calmed down, and so did his expression. Though Dumbledore was sure Voldemort was gone from Harry's mind, it did not calm him one bit; Harry was unconscious again. McGonagall ran out of the room, crying; Dumbledore, despite his age, ran after her.

Dumbledore reached McGonagall, gently grabbed her shoulders, and turned her around to face him. Her eyes were red and puffy, having cried so much. She burst into tears again, and buried her face in his shoulders.

However much he wanted to, he could not say anything to comfort her. He wanted to tell her that everything would be fine, that Harry would get through this; but he knew that was something he could no longer promise, so he just let her cry, and pulled her into a big, teddy bear-like hug.

Soon enough, Madame Pomfrey came running towards them.

"Albus! Minerva! What happened? Is everything all right?" she asked worriedly, but stopped in shock the minute she saw McGonagall crying.

"Albus, what happened?" she asked quietly.

"Poppy….there's been another attack on Harry," he answered, sounding depressed and deeply concerned.

"Here, at Hogwarts? How is that possible?"

"Well…not exactly inside the castle…more like inside Harry's mind," he answered.

When Madame Pomfrey still looked puzzled and confused, Dumbledore added, "Lord Voldemort got access to Harry's mind and attacked him with the Cruciatus from inside his mind. Harry was awake for a while, but now he's unconscious again."

Madame Pomfrey didn't say anything, but rushed to the hospital wing. Dumbledore and McGonagall followed.


	5. Who? What? Where?

Chapter 5

Who…what…where?

It was now very late at night. Madame Pomfrey was just finishing up Harry's examination, which, to her disappointment, didn't go so well.

"How is he doing? Will you be able to help him? How much damage is done? Is it worse than the last attack? How was You-Know-Who able to attack his mind like that? What--" McGonagall exhaled all these questions.

"Minerva, you lost me after how is he doing! And right now he's not doing so well…he's…he can die any second now, put it that way," Madame Pomfrey explained, wishing she didn't have to.

"What…how…there isn't anything you can do for him?" McGonagall asked, horrified. Dumbledore looked extremely grave; the twinkle in his eyes was no longer present.

"I'm afraid there is nothing that can be done for him…he is not responding to any type of healing potion. And since he's unconscious it's hard to tell if the potions are even helping him."

"What do you suggest should be done? Should we send him to St. Mungo's?"

"St. Mungo's no…but maybe a Muggle hospital, perhaps we should send him back to his family--"

"NO!" exclaimed both Dumbledore and McGonagall at once. Lupin had told them about how Harry was treated, and the last thing they needed was for Harry to get beat up. About a fortnight before Harry was first attacked Lupin came to check in on Harry and saw that Vernon was beating Harry up. He didn't want to interfere for it might have caused problems, but he immediately told Dumbledore about it. They told Madame Pomfrey that Harry's uncle wasn't treating him well, and when she heard that Harry's uncle hit him, she was horrified.

"But…but Albus, why didn't Harry say anything? I mean, I knew about the shocking device, and I knew they almost starved him to death-just look at the boy- but they were _physically abusing_ him? That's despicable! I'm surprised Harry didn't tell anyone!"

"Poppy, you know Harry wouldn't dare complain. I knew he dreaded going back there every summer, but he would never tell me why…he doesn't want people to worry about him," Dumbledore explained; just the thought of Harry being abused made him furious.

"Well of course we would worry about him! He could have gotten seriously injured, not to mention him being the target of constant attacks! What did he think we would do, tell him we're happy for him! It's only natural that we worry, especially because Albus and I are his—" Minerva said, but was cut off by Dumbledore.

"Minerva, this isn't the time! The point is-this is Harry we're talking about-he doesn't want anyone to worry about him no matter who the person is. And right now, I'm worried about him more than I've ever been before," he finished sadly.

"Well…I don't know what to tell you two, there's nothing I can do for him but keep giving him healing potions; hopefully they will help him in the long run," Madame Pomfrey said, frustrated. This was the first time in many years in which she could not do anything to help a patient; she never felt so hopeless.

McGonagall looked at Dumbledore with saddened eyes; the other students would be arriving the next day, and there was nothing she could do for Harry. She, like everyone else, felt hopeless.

Dumbledore and McGonagall went to their private studies; McGonagall decided to sleep with Dumbledore that night, for she needed his comfort and assurance. They went up to Dumbledore's room, silently changed into their pajamas, and went to sleep, Dumbledore holding McGonagall tightly in his arms.

The next day was spent next to Harry's bed. McGonagall didn't even bother to prepare everything for the next day's classes. Dumbledore sat next to McGonagall, gently stroking her hair, which was no longer in a tight bun, but lay on her shoulders. This made McGonagall look much younger and Dumbledore couldn't help but admire her beauty.

"Albus, stop looking at me like that," McGonagall said teasingly.

"Like what, my dear?" he answered innocently.

McGonagall smiled but didn't say anything. She was silent for several minutes, until she finally said, "Albus, when are we going to tell him?"

"Tell him?" he asked, though he already knew the answer.

"Tell him that we're his grandparents! Albus, he needs to know!"

"Minerva, you know very well we can't tell him! If he finds out, he will want to stay with us, and we can't do that! You're James's foster mom you're only related to him through adoption! I'm only related to him through marrying you, and I don't think he knows that we're closer than a headmaster and a professor…nor do I think he wants to know," he winked at her.

"Albus, I want him to know before…before he…" she could not bear to finish the sentence.

"Minerva, don't think that way. Once Harry gets better he has a very good chance of defeating Voldemort."

"But what if he doesn't! What if something happens and he never finds out? Doesn't it hurt you to see him suffering? Doesn't it pain you to watch him desperately seek parental figures in his life, not knowing that he already has them?"

"Of course it does! But Molly and Arthur have their own kids to take care of, and though I have a feeling Remus and Tonks want to adopt him, Remus is still a werewolf and Tonks is an Auror, they don't have time to take care of Harry."

"Which is exactly why I think we should tell him…and we might as well tell him _everything, _if you get my drift," she answered hopefully.

"You're right, I just don't think now is a good time…let's wait until Harry gets better, we'll decide later on."

But McGonagall knew that Dumbledore was already convinced.

Soon the students arrived and Dumbledore stood up to give his usual start-of-term speech.

"Welcome, welcome…hopefully you all had a good summer, and may your school year be even better! As I have repeatedly stated for who knows how long, the Forbidden Forest is out of bounds to students."

His thought drifted to Harry, who was all alone in the hospital wing. '_Harry sure did take too many trips to the Forbidden Forest…_'

As Mr. Filch, the caretaker, reminds me daily, no magic is permitted in corridors between classes; also, a list of other things that are not permitted can be found on Mr. Filch's office door.

'_Harry once had detention with Argus…' _

"Your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher will be…yours truly." A round of applause broke out amongst the students; it lasted for quite a while.

'_Harry is the best in his year in Defense Against the Dark Arts…'_

"Quidditch tryouts will be held on the--" he broke off at the sound of the doors of the great Hall slamming. In front of them stood no other than Cornelius Fudge and…Petunia Dursley?

(A/N-this would have been a GREAT, FANTABULOUS, SUPER cliffhanger…you're lucky I'm not a fan of extremely short chapters…)

Everyone simply stared. No one, of course, knew who the woman next to Fudge was, but Ron and Hermione felt as if they knew her from somewhere.

Dumbledore rose to his feet and said, "Ahh…to what do I owe this pleasant surprise?" though it was obvious he didn't like either of them; he was bluntly taken aback from their visit.

"We demand to see Harry Potter!" said Fudge indignantly. Behind him another man strutted along. When the man got closer, both Dumbledore and McGonagall recognized him as Vernon Dursley. Dumbledore quickly glanced at McGonagall, and saw that she was terrified.

"I'm afraid Harry is not available for you to see him right now," said Dumbledore.

"Oh? And why is that? Don't tell me, he's gone back in time and blew up his Aunt again!" scorned Fudge.

"We shall discuss this later, Cornelius," Dumbledore said furiously. "You may go to the Hogwarts guest room and wait for me there. Let the feast begin," he smiled warmly to the students, who were all gaping at the three people standing by the doors. Vernon Dursley looked both raging and confused, Cornelius Fudge looked exasperated, and Petunia Dursley was merely looking around, puzzled.

The three left the dining hall and went to the Hogwarts guest room, Fudge leading the way. Dumbledore say down and squeezed McGonagall's hand in his under the table. He gave her a don't-worry-everything-will-be-fine kind of look and began eating. McGonagall, however, did not have an appetite. She had a hunch as to what the Minister might be doing here and what more with two Muggles. Not too often were Muggles brought into the Wizarding World, unless they had a child who was a wizard or witch. And out of all the Muggles on earth, Fudge brought _those_ Muggles? Harry's relatives? Something _had _to be wrong; otherwise the Dursleys wouldn't have agreed to come. But if they were here for the reasons she thought they were here, they would leave disappointed. She will not let them do this. She made the mistake of letting that happen once, but she won't let it happen again.

When the feast ended, everyone rose and went to their dormitories. Dumbledore and McGonagall turned to go to the guest room, fearing what they might have to deal with.

Ron, Hermione and Ginny walked together to the common room, discussing who the two people who came with Fudge might be and were Harry was. No one had told them anything besides the fact that Harry was still unconscious.

"Where do you reckon Harry is? It's a bit odd that Dumbledore isn't letting Fudge see him," said Ginny.

"I have no idea where he is; probably in the hospital wing…perhaps Fudge doesn't know about the attack. I wonder why Fudge would want to see Harry…it's not as if Harry's been in contact with him, why all of a sudden show interest?" pondered Hermione, more to herself.

"The weird thing is, I feel like I've seen these people before; they look vaguely familiar…" said Ron.

A long silence broke between the three until they reached the Fat Lady. Suddenly, Hermione exclaimed, "Of course! They're Harry's relatives, remember? We see them every year when they pick Harry up!"

"But what would they be doing at the school? From what Harry's told us, they don't exactly care for him, I doubt they even know he's hurt…and besides, they're _Muggles, _what would they be doing at _Hogwarts_?" Ginny asked, perplexed.

"I don't know, but it can't be anything good," Hermione said. She looked worried, but didn't say anything else. Ron nodded in agreement, but also remained silent. Ginny, however, said, "Whatever it is, I'm going to find out!" and ran upstairs to her dormitory. Ron and Hermione exchanged confused looks, and both went to bed with many unanswered questions.

Back in the Hogwarts guest room, Dumbledore and McGonagall were confused. They came into the room, but neither Fudge nor the Dursleys were present; in fact, the room looked as if it hadn't been occupied that night at all.

"Albus, you don't think…" McGonagall started, fearing the answer.

"I hope not…they better not have…" was his reply.

They ran towards the hospital wing. If one did not know any better, it would have never been suspected that both of the people running were over 60 years old, for they were running incredibly fast.

They reached the hospital wing and saw the doors closed and Fudge standing outside.

Cornelius…I thought I told you that you may not see Harry at the moment!" Dumbledore said angrily.

"His relatives wanted some time alone with him, they have the right to see him if they wish," he replied.

"And Poppy?" McGonagall asked.

"Madame Pomfrey left her office to get some dinner and told me to keep an eye on Harry," he answered.

"And this is what you call 'keeping on eye' on him?" she retorted angrily.

From inside the hospital wing, someone started yelling. Dumbledore pulled out a pair of Extendable Ears and said, "An excellent invention of the Weasley twins…quite useful, might I add."

Dumbledore and McGonagall both grabbed an extendable ear and listened intently. Fudge snorted and started walking away from them, looking bored.

"I will not take this!" yelled Vernon Dursley.

"Honey, try to calm down, we're at his school right now…we'll deal with him later," Petunia tried to soothe her husband.

"No! I don't want to wait ten months to take care of this. ..I'm dealing with him NOW!" he yelled even louder. A loud thump that sounded like someone crashing to the floor was heard. And then sounds of beating resonated through the Extendable Ears.

Dumbledore and McGonagall glanced at each other, but before they could pull back from the Extendable Ears, there was more yelling.

"He-(punch)-IS-(punch)-AN INSUFFERABLE-(kick)-LITTLE-(slap)-BRAT-(punch)-AND WILL RETURN TO MY HOUSE AND LIVE LIKE A NORMAL PERSON! THIS FREAK WORLD NEEDS TO END!-(punch, punch, kick, punch, kick)." Then Harry groaned, and it suddenly dawned upon Dumbledore and McGonagall what was going on.

They quickly tried to open the doors, but realized it was locked. Together as one they yelled, "Alohamora!" Both wands raised, they pointed them at the Dursleys, only to find Harry conscious but soaked in blood on the floor.


	6. Minor Conflicts

**Hey guys, I'm so sorry it took me so long to update! I was very busy with writing this story (I actually have two more chapters already written), and writing my other story, and school, etc…but I am proud to present you with chapter 6 of One Heck of a Year, and I hope you will enjoy it! Also, if you have plot suggestions/predictions, feel free to leave them with your reviews. Enjoy!**

Chapter 6

Minor Conflicts

McGonagall ran to Harry's help while Dumbledore remained in his place, his wand pointed at the terrified Dursleys.

"As I am sure the Minister already knows, I do not allow anyone to manhandle my students, and what you are doing is far beyond manhandling," Dumbledore said, trying to keep himself calm.

"What are you going to do, _Professor? _Going to kill me? I would like to see you try!" Vernon scorned.

"Oh, but I'm afraid killing you will do no one any good…perhaps maybe Harry," Dumbledore said furiously. Harry tried to smile, but winced in pain.

"How dare you speak to me like that? I am a well-respected person, you cannot just threaten me!" Vernon screamed in rage.

"I thought I just did," said Dumbledore coolly. "But in the meantime, I suggest that you and your wife go back to that clean house of yours, until we figure out further arrangements."

"Not without the boy we're not! The only reason I agreed to come to this filthy place is to get him away from here, and I'm not leaving without him!" he yelled at Dumbledore.

McGonagall's fears were now confirmed. The Dursleys were here to take Harry, probably so they can abuse him some more; but she won't let that happen!

"If you thought you were taking Harry back to Privet Drive, you were undoubtedly wrong," said McGonagall angrily.

Harry could not tell them how much he appreciated the protection they were giving him, both because he couldn't find words and because his jaw hurt every time he tried to talk. He knew McGonagall was doing her best to help him, but his eyes hurt so he kept them closed, and therefore could not see what she was doing.

"Oh, is that so? Well, since I'm his only living relative—thank god they're all dead—I have every right to take him wherever I want; no _freak _like yourself or that mad head next to you is going to stop me."

"Actually, Mr. Dursley, as headmaster of Harry's school, I have every right to request Harry stays here," said Dumbledore.

"Sure, you can _request _whatever you like…but that boy is going with me, whether you like it or not!"

And with that being said, he grabbed Harry by his blood-soaked shirt from under McGonagall's arms, and began running out of the door, dragging Harry and not caring that every inch of Harry's body was hurting; Petunia ran after him. Just as Dumbledore meant to Stun them, Fudge threw them a shoe, which they caught, and they disappeared; the shoe was a portkey.

"What do you think you're doing? You just helped them escape!" McGonagall dismayed him.

"I am very aware of that, thank you very much. Harry is a threat to the Wizarding World, Chosen One or not, and it would only harm us if he stays in our world. His relatives might even succeed in knocking some sense into him, he might not want to come back," Fudge said happily.

Dumbledore and McGonagall, who both knew about the prophecy, looked at each other. Then, shaking with rage, McGonagall said, "He might not be able to come back! I bet you anything they're going to hit him and probably kill him in the end!"

"Nonsense, they wouldn't kill him! And the beating can only do him justice," Fudge said.

Dumbledore then realized something. He looked at McGonagall, and it was soon obvious to both of them that Fudge had put the Imperious curse on the Dursleys. They doubted Fudge was dumb enough to send them back to Privet Drive, but they hoped with all their heart that they were overestimating him.

Dumbledore immediately conjured Patronuses and sent one to Lupin, Tonks, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. McGonagall, however, stood in her place, staring at Fudge, who was now lying motionless on the floor, having been Stunned by Dumbledore.

"We'll get him back, don't worry," Dumbledore said soothingly, as if he read her mind.

"But Albus, this is exactly what I was afraid of! They took him and we have no idea where he is!"

"The Dursleys don't know the magical world; Fudge wouldn't send them there, especially because he wants Harry _out _of here. They're probably at Privet Drive; Voldemort apparently did something to weaken the protection wards, which is why the Death Eaters got a hold of Harry in the first place. I strengthened the wards since, so I know for a fact those indeed were his relatives and not imposters. I'll just have to take the wards off again before we go there, that's all," explained Dumbledore.

"All right, let's go…no time to waste," answered McGonagall.

Dumbledore lifted the Anti-Apparition charms and they flooed to Lupin's house, where they met everyone else. Dumbledore re-instated the Anti-Apparition charms, and without uttering a word, all five of them Apparated to Number 4, Privet Drive.

A few seconds later, when they all arrived at Privet Drive, they all turned and looked at Dumbledore, waiting for instructions.

Dumbledore, however, didn't say anything, but rushed forward towards the front door; everyone else followed, McGonagall leading the rest of the group.

McGonagall asked, "Albus, shouldn't we try to not make our presence known? It will be easier to get Harry that way."

"No. no, I do not intend to do anything in stealth," was his answer.

They all knew that this situation could not be good under any circumstances.

Dumbledore knocked on the door, but no one answered. He knocked once more, and the door opened, revealing a very fat Dudley.

"Ah, hello Mr. Dursley! May I speak to your parents?" Dumbledore tried to sound as cheerful as possible.

"My mum doesn't want me talking to strangers!" Dudley answered and made to shut the door. Dumbledore put his foot behind the door to stop it from closing.

"I'm sorry, my name is Albus Dumbledore, I'm Harry's headmaster, and these are acquaintances of Harry." Dudley didn't say anything, but back away as if scared and grabbed his behind so that it looked like it was a large balloon that was being squeezed.

Tonks looked like she would burst out laughing any second.

"We are looking for Harry, might you have any idea of where he could be?" Dumbledore asked.

"No!" Dudley yelled, making it quite obvious that he was lying.

"Please, Mr. Dursley, Harry is badly hurt and he needs to be taken care of. Are your parents home?" Dumbledore tried once more.

"No, they went out, but I'm not supposed to let anyone inside. Now go away!" he made to shut the door, but Dumbledore stopped him again, while the rest of the group stood behind him, shocked.

"Mr. Dursley, we need to know where Harry is!" he commanded the boy, hoping to get the answer he wants and so desperately needs.

"I don't know where he is, he's not in his room or under the cupboard under the stairs, nor is he in any of the other rooms," Dudley finally succumbed.

"Very well…would it be all right if we looked for him? I really need him back at the school," Dumbledore explained.

"Fine, but don't tell my mum…I'll tell her I don't know how Harry got away…that is, if you find him."

"Oh, I'll find him. Thank you for letting us in the house." Dudley just nodded, but backed away from Dumbledore when Dumbledore made to get in.

"Don't worry, I have no intention of giving you a pig's tail or performing any magic on you for that matter," Dumbledore smiled at him. Dudley turned pink and nodded vigorously, though it was plain that Dumbledore's assurance calmed it down.

"Remus, Tonks, you two search the downstairs. Molly, Arthur-look in the Dursleys' bedroom; Minerva-look in Harry's bedroom, I'll look in the cupboard he used to live in and come help upstairs afterwards," Dumbledore instructed them.

They departed right away, each to their designated place. Lupin, Tonks, and the Weasleys came back after five minutes, not having found Harry anywhere. Dumbledore and McGonagall took a longer time.

Dumbledore opened the cupboard door and found it dark, though completely empty. He whispered, "Lumos," just to make sure, but as he suspected, Harry wasn't there. He stood there, staring blankly at the tiny folding mattress Harry used to sleep on, and remained still for quite a while. He thought of Harry, having to live here for more than half his life; of the suffering Harry had endured all of his life, both from his relatives and Voldemort. The image of Harry being beat up by Vernon Dursley flashed through his mind and tears began trickling down his cheeks. He saw Harry fighting Quirrel, Harry coming out of the maze, Harry being possessed by Voldemort, Harry being tortured in Azkaban, Harry screaming in the hospital wing when Voldemort got access to his mind…and the tears just kept coming.

Meanwhile, McGonagall was searching Harry's room. She had searched under the bed, looked at every corner of the room, but she could not finding him anywhere; however, something told her that Harry was in this room. She looked upon the room again, examining every little inch, until…blood! Her eyes fell upon droplets of blood on the floor, leading to…a closet?

There stood a very small closet that looked more like a dresser. It was about her height, but not very wide at all…a person couldn't possibly fit in there. She put her ear against the closet door and listened closely; to her surprise and horror, she heard breathing…very short-breath, shallow breathing, almost gasping for air.

She quickly unlocked the oddly locked closet door; Harry fell right into her arms, coughing and gasping for air.

"Albus! Everyone, I found him, we're in his room! Come quickly!" she yelled for help.

She hugged Harry, held him rightly in her arms.

"Harry, are you ok?" she asked concernedly.

Harry just nodded, still gasping for air. He didn't understand why McGonagall, his _teacher_, was hugging him, but since he could barely breathe he decided not to waste his breath on asking questions.

She hugged him even tighter, whispering "Anapneo" to try to ease his breathing.

The rest of the group, Dumbledore in the lead, burst into the room. McGonagall immediately released Harry from the hug so that it wouldn't seem suspicious, but still held Harry close to her, his head on her lap. She had never been this close to Harry, never been able to express her grandmotherly love for him…(A/N- I had to add the word 'grandmotherly' in there so that people who like weird pairings wouldn't get any ideas)

Dumbledore knelt beside Harry and McGonagall and looked at Harry, who was still struggling to breathe. How much he loved that boy could never be describe in words; the woman next to Harry, the love of his life…how much he wanted all three of them to live together as a family…

McGonagall looked at Dumbledore and saw that his eyes are watery, but she didn't say anything.

Dumbledore turned to face the others, who were gaping in shock; Molly and Tonks had their hand covering their mouth, while Lupin and Arthur just stood there, eyes wide with astonishment and fear. He took the group outside the room, away from McGonagall and Harry.

"Minerva and I are going to take Harry to the school; I will ask you four to remain here and free the Dursleys from the Imperious curse and Obliviate them. Make sure they are aware that Harry will not be coming back next summer due to their horrible treatment of him. Take the rest of Harry's belongings back to the school and put them in my office."

Dumbledore went back to the room and picked Harry up, and was surprised by how little he weighed. Dumbledore and McGonagall Apparated away, while the rest of the group started packing Harry's stuff.

Dumbledore and McGonagall Apparated to Lupin's house, and from Lupin's house they Apparated straight to the hospital wing (after Dumbledore lifted the Anti-Apparition charms). Dumbledore, once again, re-instated the Anti-Apparition charms, and put Harry on one of the beds. McGonagall called Madame Pomfrey from her office and noticed that Harry was sleeping. Or at least, she hoped that's what he was doing.

Madame Pomfrey ran out of her office, she immediately froze when she saw Harry, sleeping, but soaked in blood. His eyes flickered open once or twice; his sleep was obviously disturbed by the throbbing pains all over his body.

"Albus, Minerva, what happened to him?" she asked worriedly, astonished that one person can get attacked so many times in one month.

'It's a long story…Could you please check that Harry is breathing ok and that he has no broken bones? And perhaps a couple of healing spells for his wounds? I do not wish to wake up him, he needs some rest," Dumbledore said. Madame Pomfrey looked at McGonagall questioningly, but McGonagall gave her an "I'll-Tell-You-Later" look, so she started working without asking further questions.

Madame Pomfrey did all the necessary examinations, and found that Harry's breathing was still shallow; he had broken ribs and a broken jaw, but she healed those immediately. She also healed his wounds and cleaned all of the blood off of him. She could do nothing about the physical effects of the Cruciatus or the shallow breathing, but decided it would be best to monitor him overnight.

"Well, I've done all I can do…I'll check on him once in a while during the night to make sure he's ok."

"That won't be necessary, Poppy, I will be staying with Harry tonight," McGonagall said, making sure Harry was really asleep and not unconscious again.

"And so will I," added Dumbledore, smiling at McGonagall.

"What's going on with you two? You spent half your summer next to this boy! I understand you're worried about him, but one could almost mistake you for his parents with this kind of protectiveness!"

Dumbledore and McGonagall purposely avoided each other's eyes, very tempted to burst out laughing.

"We just want to make sure he's ok, that's all," said Dumbledore, half chuckling.

Madame Pomfrey gave them both a suspicious look, but didn't say anything else. She let to her office, and Dumbledore and McGonagall cuddled together on a bed next to Harry's.

They fell asleep almost immediately, only to be woken up an hour later by Harry's shouting.

"No! Leave me alone, get away from me!"

Dumbledore and McGonagall jumped out of bed and exchanged a concerned look. Harry was having a nightmare.

They both rushed over to him; McGonagall put her hands on Harry's shoulders and said, "Harry, wake up! It's just a bad dream!"

But Harry shouted even louder, "No, please don't hurt me! Let me go, please!"

"Harry, this is Professor McGonagall, you're having a nightmare. Wake up; I'm not going to hurt you."

At once Harry's eyes shot open and he gasped for air and started panting, trying to catch his breath. He didn't know why McGonagall was hugging him, but it soothed him. Dumbledore stood next to McGonagall, holding Harry's hand. Harry didn't understand why both of them were looking concerned…it was just a nightmare, and Professor McGonagall had never been so close to Harry, why was she hugging him? The most contact they ever had was when she patted him on the shoulder in his third year…and yes, Dumbledore had always been protective of him, but this was different…what was going on?

After a long silence, Harry asked, "Do I have to go back there this summer?"

Dumbledore decided not to let Harry off the hook that easily. "Why didn't you tell me they were abusing you?"

Harry looked away from them and stared fixedly at his fingers. McGonagall said, "Harry, promise me you will always tell either me or Professor Dumbledore if anyone is hurting you."

When Harry didn't answer, Dumbledore implored once more. "Harry, promise us"

Harry nodded, still starting at his fingers.

Dumbledore looked at McGonagall and asked, "Do you want to go back there this summer," though he didn't understand why anyone would want to go live with these kind of people.

"Of course I don't want to…but…where will I stay?"

McGonagall looked at Dumbledore, and when he nodded, she knew she had his permission.

Cautiously, she said, "Harry…we need to talk."


	7. Revelations and Memories

Chapter 7

Revelations and Memories

Harry looked at McGonagall, confused. "Ok…what about?"

"Well…we think it is time that you know the truth….you have other relatives alive, other than the Dursleys, that is…but these relatives aren't muggles," Dumbledore explained gently.

"I know," was his answer. But to their surprise, Harry didn't seem comforted; what more, he seemed depressed.

"You know? How do you know?" McGonagall asked him curiously.

"Aunt Petunia told me about them. But I don't want to go live with them."

"Why not? Do you even know who those relatives are?" McGonagall inquired.

"No, I don't know who they are, nor do I want to know who they are. It doesn't matter; they don't love me and I'm sick of living with people who don't care for me."

"And how do you know they don't love you?" Dumbledore asked him, wondering where Harry could have gotten such a crazy idea.

"Aunt Petunia told me. She said they had a chance to take me to live with them and they refused, saying that I'm not worth the trouble. She said they hated me and didn't want anything to do with me; and what's even worse is that these people are my grandparents. My own grandparents don't love me." Tears ran down his face.

He quickly dried the tears with the back of his hands and looked away from Dumbledore and McGonagall.

McGonagall and Dumbledore also had watery eyes, but they tried to hide it.

"Harry…your grandparents _do_ love you. The only reason they didn't take you away was because of the blood protection you had there," McGonagall explained.

"How do you know that? How do you know that they won't treat me just as the Dursleys did?"

"Because your grandparents would never do that, Harry."

"You mean…you know my grandparents?" he asked, excitement in his voice.

Dumbledore nodded, and said, "Harry…we _are_ your grandparents."

Harry's jaw dropped. He couldn't believe it. His relatives, his _grandparents_, were with him all this time, and no one ever bothered to tell him?

"But…you can't be…how? I saw my grandparents in the Mirror of Erised, both are dead," he said sadly.

"Professor Dumbledore and I are married, and I am your father's step mom. We didn't tell you because we knew you would want to come live with us…but neither of us were related by blood to your parents and it would be even more disappointing…do you see why we couldn't tell you?" She hoped he would understand.

"Yeah, I guess…how is that possible though? How come no one else knows?"

"When James's parents died, Albus and I adopted him. No one knew about the adoption but Lily."

No one said anything for a long time. Finally, Dumbledore, who hadn't said anything for quite a while, said, "Harry, we really do love you. We want you to come live with us from now on."

Harry's expression softened, and soon a big grin spread on his face. "And you promise I won't have to go back there ever again?" he asked for assurance, still not sure if they were joking with him or not.

"We promise, Harry. You will never have to go back there," said Dumbledore. "And we wouldn't let you even if you wanted to," added McGonagall. _'The way they treated him, honestly!'_

Thank you, professor Dumbledore, professor McGonagall…you have no idea how much this means to me."

"I think you can call us grandma and grandpa when were not around others," McGonagall smiled at him.

Harry got out of bed and put his arms around the two of them. He started sobbing, but not because he was sad, or in pain, which were his usual reasons for crying; these tears were of happiness…as embarrassing as it was to cry in front of teachers.

And so they stood there, hugging, embraced as a nice, not so big happy family. (A/N: a big fat AWWW fits right about here…haha I love these cheesy moments).

When Harry finally went to bed, he had a big grin on his face, despite the pain he was in. The family he longed for—one he never thought he would have—is now with him. And nothing in the world, not even Voldemort, could make him depressed ever again.

Before he fell asleep, he said, "Goodnight grandma, good night grandpa." Dumbledore and McGonagall simply smiled, and answered, "Goodnight Harry." They all went to bed happier than they've been in a long time.

Harry woke up in the next morning ready to go to his classes. He made to get out of bed, but as he set his feet on the floor, he collapsed. His legs were too weak to carry his weight, even though he didn't weigh that much.

Madame Pomfrey came swiftly out of her office and helped him back to his bed.

"You're not going anywhere, young man. You are to stay in your bed until you are completely healthy."

"But I don't want to miss classes! I'll fall behind!" Harry complained.

"You won't, Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore have volunteered to come here every night to bring you your homework and teach you what you missed."

She mumbled something Harry could not understand, but he wasn't paying attention. He would get to see his grandparents tonight, and that is all that matters. And though he saw them almost every day the years before, seeing them now meant a lot more to him.

Harry sat impatiently in bed all day. He had nothing to do but try to recount as many spells as possible in transfiguration and charms. Defense Against the Dark Arts was, of course, not necessary to review. He wondered who their new teacher would be and hoped for the sake of the world that they had a good one this year.

He was, however, a little put down from the fact that he no longer could become an Auror. He knew Snape wouldn't accept him into his class no matter what. He remembered his career-counseling session with McGonagall and Umbridge last year and wondered whether McGonagall would still help him become an Auror…perhaps he could learn N.E.W.T potions by himself, its not like he has anything better to do in the hospital wing…

The infirmary door opened and Ron, Hermione, and Ginny ran towards him.

"Harry! Oh Harry, how are you? Where have you been, we were so worried!" Hermione jumped on him and gave him a rib-crushing hug. Harry winced in pain and tried with all his might not to let out a sob.

"Harry what's wrong?" Hermione backed away from him. Ginny and Ron stood next to her, looking worried.

And Harry told everything after making them swear not to tell anyone; he told them about Voldemort's attack on his mind after Azkaban, about the Dursleys and Fudge and about the private lessons he would be getting from Dumbledore and McGonagall. He hesitated to tell them about his newly-found grandparents and decided to first ask Dumbledore and McGonagall if he could tell anyone.

They all stood there, horrified, until Ginny mumbled, "I have to go Harry. I'll visit you later," and ran away almost in tears. She wasn't used to hearing shocking news such as these. Harry hadn't, after all, told her about the prophecy, so she didn't know _why_ the Death Eaters are after Harry in particular.

Ron and Hermione were both speechless. Yes, Harry was always the target of Death Eaters and Voldemort had always wanted to kill him, but two attacks in a row and then Fudge allowing the Dursleys to take Harry away was quite a lot to be happening over one summer.

"But…Harry…if you're not going back to the Dursleys, where are you going to live?" Hermione asked him.

"Erm…well…I'll figure something out…but there's a whole year until the summer so I have plenty of time to come up with something. Right now I just want to get out of this bed."

"C'mon then, we'll take you!" Ron volunteered excitedly.

"Ron, no! If Madame Pomfrey finds out she'll never trust us to see Harry again!"

"Oh come on, how is she going to find out? Look, we'll bring him back before anyone notices, we'll just go for a walk and come back," Ron begged her.

"Oh all right, but be it on your heads," she gave in.

Thus, the three of them left the hospital wing, Harry leaning heavily on both Ron and Hermione's shoulders. They went up the staircase and walked around a bit. They didn't know that someone had noticed Harry's absence from the hospital wing.

Dumbledore and McGonagall were very much looking forward to teaching Harry that afternoon. They walked into the hospital wing only to find Harry's bed empty.

"Poppy, where is Harry?" Dumbledore implored.

"What do you mean, where is Harry, he's in his—" she came out of her office and froze when she saw the empty bed.

"He was there when Mr. Weasley and Ms. Granger came in…"

Dumbledore and McGonagall looked at each other and said, "They better not have!" Harry was too weak to be out of bed, let alone walking around. They quickly left the room and went looking for Harry.

Ron, Harry, and Hermione were about to go down the staircase back to the hospital wing, when suddenly Harry's legs gave out and he fell down the stairs.

Dumbledore and McGonagall heard a crash coming from the nearest staircase. When they reached the staircase they saw Harry on the floor and Ron and Hermione running down the stairs towards him.

Dumbledore and McGonagall rushed towards Harry and saw that Harry was bruised. McGonagall levitated him to the hospital wing, Ron and Hermione following silently.

"Professor, I'm fine, really! I just tripped, it's nothing serious…it doesn't even hurt that much," Harry lied.

Dumbledore surveyed Harry and knew at once that Harry was only saying that so that his friends won't get in trouble. He smiled and said, "Mr. Weasley, Ms. Granger, you may go now; Harry needs to rest."

The two glanced at Harry appreciatively and left the hospital wing without another word.

"Harry, are you sure you're all right?" McGonagall asked once more.

"Yes, prof-grandma, I'm fine," he lied and tried to smile at her. He didn't want nor need to be stuck in bed for an even longer time, nor did he want to worry his grandparents. All he wanted was to spend time with them.

Dumbledore looked Harry in the eyes and immediately sensed he was lying again, without even using Legilimency. Harry looked at Dumbledore and saw that Dumbledore was amused, and instantly knew that he was caught. He prayed for Dumbledore not to say anything, and when Dumbledore nodded and mouthed "later" Harry knew he would not confront him…at least, not right now.

"So…do I have a lot of homework?"

"You have quite a lot, which fits perfectly with the abundance of time you are going to spend here. Let's see…Transfiguration, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Potions…" McGonagall listed.

"Potions? I'm not taking Potions this year, I only got an E on my O.W.Ls," he said sadly.

"You do not wish to be an Auror anymore?" McGonagall asked, more than mildly surprised.

"Of course I do, but I thought Sna—I mean, Professor Snape doesn't accept students with anything but an Outstanding O.W.L."

"He normally doesn't but he agreed to give you private lessons in Potions until you get better," Dumbledore explained.

"Private less—no, I won't do it! Last year was a complete disaster!"

"It won't be as bad as last year because either Minerva or I will be present during the lesson. And he won't throw you out of his office this time," Dumbledore winked at him.

Harry laughed and hoped Dumbledore was right.

"Ready to start?" McGonagall smiled at him.

"Erm…I don't have any books, or anything for that matter," he said awkwardly.

"Hagrid took care of that for you, he will be bringing your books tomorrow morning; I have the list of your homework assignments right here…but right now it's important to work on Occlumency," explained Dumbledore.

"All right, I'm ready," said Harry, and slowly got out of his bed.

"Grandma and I will both enter your mind, but if you empty yourself of all emotion and leave your mind blank you should be able to block both of us out."

"Legillimens!" both Dumbledore and McGonagall said.

Flashes of images went through Harry's mind…He was 4 and Vernon Dursley threw him into the cupboard, not giving him any meals for three days…He was 9, Dudley got 34 presents for his birthday while all Harry got was toilet paper…he was fighting Quirrel…fighting the basilisk…

Harry tried to empty his mind, but he couldn't…he fell down to his knees, and suddenly Dumbledore and McGonagall started to become clearer, but he could still see his thoughts.

"Kill the spare…he saw Cedric Digory being murdered…and then, when the thought he was finally overcoming the Legilimency…

An image of Sirius falling through the veil flashed through his mind over and over again. And then a high pitched, cruel laugh was heard…and a loud, deep voice said, "that will be your end too, Potter, you will die the same way your pathetic godfather did…mark my word, Potter, I will kill you by the end of this year…"

Dumbledore and McGonagall immediately broke eye contact and ended the Legilimency.

Harry was leaning against the wall, staring fixedly at the floor and trying to hold back his tears; he did not know why this was affecting him so much—it is not the first time that Voldemort has accessed his mind or threatened him—but something about his grandparents viewing this made him feel sick, as if everything was suddenly his fault.

McGonagall knelt down beside Harry and pulled him up to a hug. Dumbledore looked at them sadly and said, "Harry, when Voldemort gets access to your mind, he controls your thoughts…this can be used as means of possessing you, so it is exceptionally important that you learn Occlumency."

"I know…but for some reason, no matter what I do I can't empty my mind," he said, somewhat ashamed.

And so they taught Harry ways to relax while still having control over his thoughts. After teaching him techniques of Occlumency, McGonagall hugged him goodnight while Dumbledore just looked at him lovingly. Harry went to bed content, dreading his private lesson with Snape he would have the following day.


	8. Typical Lesson with Snape

**Hey guys! I managed to write the 8th chapter in one day! I worked super hard on it so please R&R. Some interesting Quidditch match is coming up…and we have a traitor in the school. Stay tuned!**

Chapter 8

Typical Lesson with Snape

Harry woke up the next morning and saw that Hagrid had brought him all his books; on top of this pile was a piece of parchment with his homework written on it.

He ate the breakfast Madame Pomfrey left for him and immediately started to work. What happened last night shook him, and he was eager to work diligently in order to keep his mind off of Sirius.

He first tackled transfiguration and found that they only reviewed O.W.L material, so he was able to finish that in no time. He then wrote his Herbology essay about the effects of gillyweed, which he could describe quite well having taken it himself in his fourth year.

His Defense Against the Dark Arts homework, though long, was very easy. Somehow all the homework questions he had to answer were about things he taught in the D.A he wondered if Dumbledore had anything to do with that or if it was really N.E.W.T material.

After about 4 hours of work he finally finished all of his homework—everything but Potions. He decided to start Potions after lunch, partly because he was hungry and partly because of procrastination.

His plate from breakfast suddenly disappeared and a new, clean plate soon reappeared. Seconds afterwards food appeared on his plate and he started eating. Hermione and Ron came in right then and they decided to have lunch together.

"Dobby?" Harry said out loud.

A 'pop' was heard and Dobby appeared in front of them.

"Yes, Harry Potter sir?"

"How have you been, Dobby?" he smiled at the elf.

"Dobby has been well, sir, how is Harry Potter? Feeling better, Dobby hopes?"

"Much better, thanks Dobby. I'm sorry to bother you, but I was wondering whether you could fix some lunch for Ron and Hermione?"

"Of course, Harry Potter sir, anything for Harry Potter!" he said excitedly. He snapped his fingers and two plates full of food appeared in front of them. He then clapped and three glasses of pumpkin juice appeared, along with three pieces of chocolate fudge cake.

Hermione, of course, insisted of paying Dobby for his services, and after much bargaining Dobby accepted a Knut instead of the Galleon she offered him.

"Let Dobby know if there's anything else Dobby can do!" Dobby smiled at them, and with a snap of his fingers, disappeared.

The three ate their lunches while discussing the goings on at school.

"Dumbledore is brilliant! He is the coolest Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we ever had, aside from Lupin, of course," said Ron.

"Yes, I really like having him as a teacher…he's quite unique," Hermione agreed.

Then an awkward silence broke between the three. Ron and Hermione didn't really know how to ask Harry if anything was going on with Dumbledore and McGonagall. They noticed that McGonagall was acting strangely overprotective of Harry…and they always knew that Harry was Dumbledore's favorite student, but they seemed much closer than a student and a headmaster nowadays…something wasn't right, but they couldn't point their finger at it.

"Harry…is there something going on between you and Dumbledore and McGonagall? Is everything all right?" Hermione asked, trying to sound casual, yet very blunt.

"What do you mean?" Harry responded innocently.

Hermione and Ron exchanged nervous looks. "Well, they're just acting a bit…odd, when they're around you," she said cautiously.

"Hermione's right mate, they keep looking at you in a weird way, and they even talk about constantly after class…yesterday after Defense Against the Dark Arts class McGonagall came into Dumbledore's classroom when Hermione and I were packing up; we heard your name and she looked very worried…_oddly_ worried…if I didn't know any better I would suspect she's like your mum or something like that, the way she was talking about you."

"Oh, that is odd…what exactly did she say?" Harry asked nervously.

"Some stuff about how she can't lose you and that she doesn't trust Snape to give you private lessons. Said that he will treat you as if you were your dad and he would just use your weakness against you," Ron explained, eager for information.

"And what did Dumbledore say about that?" Harry asked curiously.

"He said that one or both of them will always be present at your private lessons, but he trusts Snape and he is sure Snape wouldn't do anything stupid that would jeopardize his trust in him. Luckily they didn't realize we could hear them…but they were still a bit strange if you ask me," Hermione concluded.

Harry tried his best to look perplexed, sand said, "Well, I'll just have to find out tonight, won't I? I don't see any reason why they should be acting that way."

"All right…" Hermione succumbed, but she did not look convinced. "We better get going, we have Potions next…good luck with Snape tonight," Ron said gravely.

"We'll come and have meals with you every day…we'll just say we eat in the Dormitory because of all the homework we get. Hardly believable about Ronald, but he's with me so it should be fine," said Hermione, trying to lighten up the mood.

Ron and Hermione left, leaving Harry to do his Potions essay. Surprisingly, it wasn't difficult for Harry to do Potions homework knowing that other teachers will be present during his lesson. Snape can't decide to fail him on a whim now…

Harry worked diligently to complete his homework. When he was finally done, he decided to read his Potions book in order to get ahead of his lesson.

At precisely six o'clock Dumbledore and McGonagall came in the infirmary. McGonagall looked irritated at first, but when she looked at Harry her expression softened.

"Harry, how are you doing?" Dumbledore asked him cheerfully.

"Much better, thanks. I can stand up without any help now…how were lessons today?"

"They were fine, same old material from last year...the way students forget spells, honestly, you'd think they never learned any of them…summer break is too long, I tell you," McGonagall said playfully.

"It's even longer at the Dursleys," Harry said sadly.

Dumbledore and McGonagall exchanged grave, worried looks and McGonagall asked, "Harry…what exactly did the Dursleys do to you?"

Harry didn't answer.

"Harry, don't worry…you can tell us," Dumbledore said gently.

And just as Harry began to talk, the door burst open and Severus Snape came walking into the infirmary, already crabby and irascible. Dumbledore sighed. He would have to wait a little longer to hear Harry's story.

"Good evening Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall. Potter," he finally acknowledged Harry.

"Good evening, Professor Snape. I hope you are well," McGonagall said politely.

"I would be better if I didn't have to be here," Snape responded rudely. "Now, Potter, if you would please tell me what the Draught of the Living Death potion will do to the drinker."

"The potion will put the dreamer into an extremely powerful sleep," Harry answered, having read this just an hour prior to the lesson.

Snape's lip curled, expressing his extreme dislike to the fact that Harry actually knew what he was talking about. "Very well…what are the ingredients, Potter?"

"Wormwood, Asphodel, Sopophorus Bean and Valerian Roots," Harry responded, hoping to God that he was right.

"Yes, it's a shame you didn't know the answer to this in your first year."

Harry's temper was rising. He finally got an answer right in potions and Snape was still unsatisfied?

"Now, really! What do you want him to do, recite the whole chapter? He answered correctly!" protested McGonagall.

Dumbledore said nothing, but nodded politely to Snape to continue.

"Well Potter, this is what you will be making today. To see if it works, you will try it on yourself in the end. I have the antidote in case your potion is actually brewed correctly," Snape smirked.

Dumbledore and McGonagall looked at Harry worriedly, but said nothing. Harry got out everything he needed and began his work. Knowing that his grandparents are there with him made him feel so much better about his potion-making; he was much more relaxed and managed to brew a decent potion.

Dumbledore and McGonagall watched silently as Snape observed Harry's every move. After an hour, Harry put his potion into a bottle and handed it to Snape.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Drink up!" Snape ordered him quite nastily.

"Erm, is that really necessary? I mean, it looks like it's done correctly…doesn't it?"

"Potter, you will do as I say, even if other teachers are present!" Snape raged.

Dumbledore and McGonagall gave him a "there's-nothing-we-can-do" type of look, and he drank the potion unwillingly. At first he thought he did something wrong—nothing happened. A minute later, though, he started shaking uncontrollably; Dumbledore and McGonagall ran forward and McGonagall asked Snape, "What's going on? Why is this happening?"

"He must have added too much of the Sopophorus Bean! Excess amount of Sopophorus Bean can cause the drinker to experience mild headaches when he wakes up…and it also weakens the mind to external invasion…there's nothing we can do but wait until he wakes up, the antidote doesn't work if the potion isn't done correctly," Snape said, having seen Harry drop to the floor, not shaking anymore, eyes closed.

McGonagall looked at Snape suspiciously, but did not want to say anything because she knew Dumbledore trusts him. Dumbledore carried Harry to his bed and McGonagall kissed him on the forehead when Snape wasn't looking.

They all left the infirmary, Snape leading the way and looking quite satisfied. McGonagall decided that from that day on, she does not trust Severus Snape. Whatever Dumbledore said, she had a feeling that Snape was changing…he might be loyal to Dumbledore and the Order, but his hatred for the Potters remains as solid as ever. She wasn't sure whether he knew what would happen to Harry if he drank the potion, but she was sure that he knew Harry's potion wasn't perfect and he did not look surprised to see Harry react the way he did.

Dumbledore seemed deep in his own thoughts, so she did not bother him; they each went to bed silently, pondering everything and anything about Harry James Potter.

Harry did not wake up until the next evening. He felt as if he had been sleeping for the past year. Dumbledore and McGonagall, having checked in every so often to see if Harry had awaken yet, were called into the infirmary right after dinner.

"Harry! Are you all right? How are you feeling?" McGonagall asked worriedly.

"I'm fine…I slept really well last night," he grinned at them.

"Do you remember anything that happened yesterday?" Dumbledore asked him.

"Yeah…I remember drinking the potion that I made…I'm guessing it worked?"

"Yes, it did…apparently, only Professor Snape himself can appreciate the exact art of potion making," winked McGonagall.

"Harry…if you get better over the course of the next few weeks, I was thinking of making you Quidditch captain," McGonagall smiled at him.

"Really? I get to play Quidditch again? Soon? And I'm captain?"

"Yes…as long as you are recovering. If Madame Pomfrey suspects anything is wrong, we might have to delay your return to the Quidditch team," explained Dumbledore.

Harry grinned at them, and decided that he will drink whatever nasty potion Madame Pomfrey gives him as long as it will help him get better.


	9. It Only Gets Better

**Hey guys! You probably want to throw tomatoes at me. I wouldn't blame you if you did. In fact, I'll supply them. I know I took a ridiculously long time to update this. I have no excuses, besides the fact that I was writing three stories at once and I kind of got distracted by reading other fan fictions. It doesn't justify my actions. It will never happen again. Ever. And if it does, then I myself will throw tomatoes at me. Promise. **

Disclaimer: None of the characters are mine (as much as I wish they were). The new members of the Quidditch team are taken from book 6—I own none of them. Oh, how I wish I was JKR.

A/N: The Quidditch tryouts were summarized from book 6. I did not create that part of the plot.

Chapter 9

It Only Gets Better

Over the course of the week Harry had been improving greatly. He drank every bit of the potions Madame Pomfrey gave him and worked on his homework diligently. His next lesson with Snape was that evening, and following would be his "talk" with Dumbledore and McGonagall. They showed signs of wanting to talk about something, but something or someone kept interfering every time they tried. Tonight, however, Harry could avoid them no longer; he had a hunch as to what they wanted to talk about, but he wasn't completely sure. The next day was supposed to be the day of his release from the hospital wing and also the day of Quidditch tryouts.

At precisely seven o'clock, Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape walked into the hospital wing. Dumbledore and McGonagall beamed at Harry, while Snape gave him a cold, loathing stare and began the lesson.

"Potter, this will be our last private lesson. You will continue to study with the rest of your classmates in N.E.W.T level, so you will be expected to live up to the expectations I have from everyone else," Snape said coldly. "Undoubtedly, you may as well drop out of my class now, but I guess time does its job."

McGonagall gave Snape an angry glare, but he ignored it. Dumbledore looked deep in thought.

"Today you will be brewing the Polyjuice Potion. The ingredients are on this piece of parchment. I have a hair of my own in this bottle, so it shouldn't be hard to tell if you have failed. You may begin," he said with an evil smile. The Polyjuice Potion was a very complicated one to brew.

Harry looked down at the piece of parchment and stared at it in shock. The ingredients had to be added in the exact order, with a very precise amount, and then stirred an exact number of times clockwise, then counterclockwise, etc. It could not have been more complicated.

Harry nervously gathered himself and began to work. He suddenly appreciated just how talented Hermione is, having brewed this potion while in her second year.

After about a half an hour of work, Snape said, "Your potion should turn a shade of brown now," and looked at the contents of his cauldron. To both his and Harry's surprise, his potion did just that. Harry looked at it in amazement, then looked up at Dumbledore and McGonagall and smiled in relief.

His success so far has encouraged him, and he continued working with hope that he might actually brew a potion correctly for once. After another half an hour of hard work and concentration that did not come easily, the potion finally looked as it did when he drank it in his second year. Harry added the piece of hair from Snape, stirred it three times clockwise and then one time counterclockwise, and gathered some in a bottle. He looked up at Snape, and when Snape nodded his approval, Harry drank up.

It tasted just as nasty as it did before; it tasted like medicine. After a few seconds, the potion started working, and Harry could feel his body changing. A few minutes later, he looked in the mirror to see another Snape staring back at him, and a furious looking Snape standing behind him. Harry-Snape beamed at Dumbledore and McGonagall, who beamed back at him. McGonagall had to force her smile though—it was quite unusual to see Snape smiling at you.

The real Snape gave Harry-Snape another drink, which immediately turned him back to Harry.

"Very well, Potter. It seems that spending time in the hospital wing was all you needed to do a decent job at Potions. You will receive your marks on this potion tomorrow," Snape said and turned to leave.

"Receive his marks? What's there to receive? He obviously achieved an O just now, he brewed the potion correctly!" exclaimed Professor McGonagall.

"Minerva, do not interfere with my grading. Harry will receive the grade I would give to my other students had they performed as he did. You will receive your marks tomorrow," he turned to Harry, and with that, left the infirmary.

Harry knew Snape would find something wrong with his potion, but he did not care. He focused on his grandparents now.

"Well done, Harry! I see you have your mother's talents when you try," Dumbledore winked at him.

Then, his face turned serious, and he said, "Harry…we want to know what happened while you were at the Dursleys. We want to know everything, if you are willing to tell us," Dumbledore said. It was a request.

Harry looked away, but nodded. "Could you…_see_ what happened, rather than me telling you?" Harry asked hopefully. He wasn't ready to talk about it openly, but he never thought he would _ask_ someone to enter his mind.

McGonagall and Dumbledore both nodded approvingly, understanding the delicacy of the situation.

They both muttered, "_Legilimency_!" and prodded Harry's mind.

Harry was seven and Uncle Vernon was yelling at him for burning the bacon.

"_You insolent little brat! You just burned my breakfast, boy!" Vernon Dursley barked at the dark-haired seven-year-old. _

"_I'm sorry Uncle Vernon, it won't happen—" Harry began, but was hit with a blow to the head before he could finish._

The older Harry could see McGonagall closing her eyes shut and Dumbledore staring sadly at the scene in front of him.

"_You are an ungrateful git, you know that? You're Aunt and I took you in generously, and this is how you repay us? You are a FREAK! Clean this up and GET OUT OF MY KITCHEN!" screamed Vernon Dursley crazily. _Anyone watching the scene would have called social security by now.

_But before Harry could clean up the mess, Vernon Dursley punched Harry in the stomach. Harry fell to the floor and Dudley joined in on the beating as well. Harry was now bleeding so badly that no part of his body was visible in its original color; he was covered in blood. _

_Harry was crying, begging for them to stop, while Vernon Dursley continued mercilessly, Dudley now watching in satisfaction. Petunia Dursley was standing a few feet away from them, watching with an expression that was hard to read. _

_After what seemed like eternity, Petunia said, "Vernon, if you go any longer we will have to take him to the hospital and we will be asked awkward questions. I think he learned his lesson."_

_Vernon Dursley stopped in mid-air, stared at the bleeding Harry on the floor, and then seemed to make up his mind to stop. He kicked Harry once more, and then left the kitchen without another word. Dudley was merely smirking, looking very much entertained._

Dumbledore and McGonagall were aghast, horrified from what they just witnessed. Tears swept down Harry's cheeks while he silently remembered what he had been trying to forget all these years.

Another memory came into play, but this time Harry was much older and the beating came with no excuse whatsoever.

_The house appeared to be completely Dursley-free. Harry was sitting in his room doing his homework, when suddenly the door to his room creaked open and a drunken Vernon Dursley walked in. Harry hid his books under the covers hastily._

"_There you are…not hiding, are we?" said Vernon nastily. "I think I ought to teach you a lesson, boy! One you won't forget!" And without warning, Harry felt a sharp blow to the head. Vernon grabbed Harry by the neck of his shirt and threw him down the stairs. Harry landed flat on his back with one big slam that knocked the breath out of him. He got up quickly and backed away._

"_What's the matter? Not afraid, are you? Surely they teach you some magic tricks to defend yourself in that freak school of yours, don't they? Oh, why, yes. I forgot. You're not allowed to use magic. How sad," Vernon Dursley wore a smug smile on his face._

Dumbledore and McGonagall recoiled, clearly disgusted with what they were seeing and decided that they saw enough.

Harry looked away from them, for he felt that if he didn't he would start crying. Dumbledore and McGonagall both had tears in their eyes, and neither of them spoke for a long time. Finally, Dumbledore said, "Why didn't you say anything? Why didn't you tell me they treated you so horribly?"

"I didn't want you to—" Harry began, but McGonagall finished the sentence for him.

"Worry. Yes, I thought that would be the reason. But you need to understand that worrying isn't a bad thing. It shows that the person is concerned for your well-being. It shows that someone cares for you."

Harry nodded, embarrassed. "Well, now you know…when they came here, to the school, my uncle didn't just hit me because he was under the Imperious curse…that was all him."

McGonagall said nothing more, but embraced Harry in a hug. Dumbledore hugged him as well, and the two left the hospital wing so that Harry could get some rest. Though they were glad Harry had shared this with them, they were still quite disturbed and they both agreed that they would make the Dursleys pay if it's the last thing they do.

The next morning Harry woke up actually feeling better, both physically and emotionally. He jumped out of bed and made to leave the hospital wing, when Madame Pomfrey came almost running out of her office and stopped him.

"What do you think you're doing?" she said angrily.

"Erm…I thought I was leaving to go to classes today, but I'm guessing I can't do that yet?" he retorted.

"No, not yet. I need to do a final check up to make sure you are ready to start a normal schedule. You need _rest_," she replied, and began checking Harry from head to toe.

After ten minutes, she gave in and said, "Very well. You may go to breakfast now, but make sure you don't overwhelm yourself. And get some REST!" she yelled after him as he hurried out of the hospital wing.

Harry hoped the Great Hall wouldn't be full of students yet as he didn't wish to attract any attention to his return. He thanked Merlin when he managed to slip in to the Great Hall without anyone noticing, and took a seat between Ron and Hermione.

"HARRY! You're back! How are you feeling?" Hermione jumped at him with a big hug.

"Never been better," Harry grinned back at her.

"Mate, I was getting worried that you wouldn't be back this school year…couldn't take any longer, eh?" he joked.

"I'm sorry, I'll try to make my bones heal faster next time," he replied teasingly as he dumped bacon and scrambled eggs onto his plate.

When he was almost done with his breakfast, McGonagall came to his table.

"Potter, I have your schedule. Try not to be late to your classes, will you?" she said with a stern face, but turned around immediately as she could not hide her smile.

Ron and Hermione gaped at her; they could not understand why she was acting so weird around Harry.

"What's up with her? She took the mickey lately. Any idea what's going on with her?" Ron asked, still looking at her suspiciously.

Hermione shook her head, deep in thought, and Harry tried his best to look as if he had no clue what Ron was talking about.

Harry looked down at his schedule, Ron peaking over his shoulder.

"We've got all of our classes together!" Ron said excitedly.

"That's great…double Transfiguration, Charms, lunch, and double Defense Against the Dark Arts. Finally, a Monday that doesn't make you want to crawl under a rock and die," Harry said playfully. "_And_ we have free periods all throughout the day. Come on, we don't want to be late for McGonagall. We better not get a lot of homework tonight, Quidditch tryouts are going to take a long time."

They got up and made their way to class. Ron finally asked, "Who do you reckon will make the team?"

"I really don't know…a lot of our good players have left, but who knows…maybe people will surprise me at tryouts," he said awkwardly.

"I've been training really hard, you know. I really hope to make the team," Ron said somewhat sadly.

"I'm sure you'll do fine. You just get nervous, but I know you have it in you," Harry said reassuringly.

They walked into the Transfiguration classroom just in time and took their seats.

McGonagall could not help but smile at them when they looked at her. Ron and Hermione exchanged questioning looks, while Harry just looked down at the table, barely hiding his grin.

A few minutes later, class had begun.

"Good morning. Today we will be working on the most complex form of Transfiguration. Throughout the year, you will work on becoming Animagi. I assume you all know what an Animagus is?" McGonagall asked the class, and they all nodded.

Hearing the word 'Animagus' brought painful memories of Sirius to Harry…he looked down at his fumbling fingers and tried to clear his mind of all thoughts…of all memories…

McGonagall noticed Harry's wincing when she spoke, but said nothing.

"If you will kindly open your books to page 97 and begin reading about Animagi. Ready the first two chapters about them, and wait for further instructions when you are done," she instructed the class.

They all opened their books, and began reading.

About a half an hour later, they finished reading both chapters and looked up expectantly at Professor McGonagall.

"Well, since you've read the chapters, you must know how to discover what your Animagus form is, then?" she asked the class.

For once, almost all hands were raised, and not just Hermione's.

McGonagall looked mildly surprised. "Yes, Mr. Thomas?"

"There is a simple way to find out. Your Patronus form is your Animagus form, so all you have to do is produce a Patronus."

"Well done, 10 points for Gryffindor. Now, you haven't read this material yet, but does anyone know how to conjure a Patronus?"

Again, to her surprise, many hands were up. Her eyebrows were raised as she called on Neville.

"Yes, Mr. Longbottom? Please tell us about the incantation and what you must do in order to produce a corporeal Patronus?"

"The incantation is Expecto Patronum, and all you have to do is think of the happiest memory you have," said Neville smartly.

"Oh, well done!" McGonagall smiled at him. "Twenty points for Gryffindor!" Neville blushed, but looked proud. He had never earned so much as a point for Gryffindor from McGonagall in class.

Suddenly, realization dawned upon McGonagall's face. "You didn't learn this in your Defense group last year, did you?" she asked suspiciously.

All eyes turned to Harry. After a few moments of silence, Harry decided it would be best if he spoke up.

"Well…Er…Yes, they did," he said, half smiling, half dreading her reaction.

McGonagall seemed like she didn't know how to react.

"How many of you know how to produce a Patronus?" she asked the class.

Eight people raised their hands; amongst them were Neville Longbottom, Dean Thomas, Parvati Patil, Lavender Brown, Seamus Finnigan, Hermione, Harry, and Ron.

McGonagall was taken aback from the number of people who raised their hands, but looked quite satisfied. She seemed speechless, until she finally said, "I think Gryffindor deserves another 50 points, don't you?" They all smirked.

"Very well. Those of you who know how to produce a Patronus, why don't you demonstrate for the rest of the class? Remember, think of the happiest memory you own, and then say _Expecto Patronum_, loudly and clearly. You may proceed."

They lined up, and each at their turn, produced a corporeal Patronus. Harry went first. He thought of him being able to spend the summer with his grandparents, and said _Expecto Patronum_. A silver stag came out of his wand.

Next in line was Hermione, and she produced her Patronus; a nice looking Otter came out of her wand.

And so it went on that they each produced their Patronuses, resulting in a very astonished Professor McGonagall.

"In all of my years of teaching, I have never seen a group of students so well prepared for class. Producing a Patronus is a task that even some aged wizards fail to learn, and I have never been prouder of my Gryffindor students. Fifty points to Gryffindor!" McGonagall praised them. They all left class quite satisfied with themselves.

The first day had past by fairly quickly, and soon they were facing Quidditch tryouts, which were a very interesting ordeal.

Surprisingly, trials didn't take that long. Harry immediately found himself three Chasers: Katie Bell returned to the team once more after an excellent performance; Demelza Robins, who has a particularly useful talent of dodging Bludgers; and Ginny Weasley, who had outflown everyone and scored seventeen goals effortlessly.

About 15 minutes later, Harry chose his two beaters: Jimmy Peakes and Ritchie Coote. Neither acquired the talents of Fred and George, but they were a reasonable match.

Cormac McLaggen, a very arrogant and haughty Gryffindor, saved four penalties out of five. Harry couldn't help but feel hatred towards him, seeing as he was very annoying and diminished Ron's chances at flying well; Ron always became nervous at moments like these.

Ron looked as if he would feint at first, but Harry was worried without reason; Ron saved all five penalties.

As the weeks went by, the trio became busier and busier. Quidditch practice was taking up most of Harry and Ron's time, and Hermione was busy with her studies. Harry and Ron were particularly overwhelmed, however, seeing as they had almost no free time and did not even get to rest during their free periods. As it turns out they needed every single one of them in order to keep up with their studies.

Harry was even more disappointed by the fact that he could not spend time with his grandparents. Next weekend, however, was their first Hogsmeade weekend and McGonagall asked him to stay after class one day.

"Potter, if you would please stay behind. I have matters to discuss with you," she said without looking up from her papers.

Ron and Hermione exchanged confused looks with Harry, but Harry muttered, "I'll catch you later," before approaching his professor. When they were finally alone, McGonagall looked up with a grin.

"How are you doing, Harry?" she asked him cheerfully.

"I'm great…training really hard for the Quidditch match this Friday…I just hope I had more time to spend with you guys," he said, not sure if informality was proper in these kinds of situations. McGonagall certainly didn't seem to mind; if anything, she appreciated it.

"Professor Dumbledore and I would like you to spend some of Hogsmeade weekend with us," she blurted.

Harry looked up at her expectantly, awaiting a joke to come. When he realized she was serious, he beamed at her. "I'd like that! Except…what would I tell Ron and Hermione?" he asked disappointedly.

"You could tell them you need to stay inside for a meeting with the headmaster and that you would have to meet them later," she winked at him.

Harry smiled at her, nodded appreciatively, and left her classroom feeling very content.

The week passed by quickly, and soon they were facing their first Quidditch match. Ron looked beyond terrified, but cheered up a bit as Harry assured him everything would be fine.

Harry was feeling quite nervous himself, but not for the same reasons. He wanted to make his grandparents proud, and he most definitely wanted to beat Malfoy. For some reason, though, he had a bad feeling about the match which he couldn't explain.

Ron hardly ate any breakfast that day, and neither did Harry. He couldn't understand why he was so nervous about the match; after all, he never lost a match to Slytherin. Ron had been doing surprisingly well during practices. Harry found that he was extremely talented if he wasn't aggravated by Slytherins. He could only hope that Ron would be able to keep his head in the game and not pay attention to insults during the match. Then everything would be fine.

They walked out onto the pitch only to be deafened by cheering and clapping. Harry stepped up to Madam Hooch and shook hands with the Slytherin Captain. The whistle sounded, and the game began.

He searched the pitch for the Snitch, keeping an eye on Malfoy all the same. Amidst all the cheering, he could hear Luna Lovegood's commentary.

"Well, today should be quite the interesting match. Potter's new team is definitely bound to be successful. Ginny Weasley has the Quaffle; I'm rather fond of that girl. She zooms past that Slytherin bloke, what's his name? I think it's Harper. Yes, that's him. Well anyways, Ginny just flew right past him, she aims, she shoots…she SCORES! Ten-nil to Gryffindor!"

Harry looked around and spotted Malfoy staring at him. Malfoy looked away when he realized Harry had noticed.

"Urquhart with the Quaffle, and he's heading towards Ronald Weasley. He aim's for the right hoop—no, his right, our left—but Ron Weasley is too quick for him! He saves it!"

The Gryffindor crowd roared triumphantly at this. The Slytherin crowd booed.

Harry, who was now flying near Ron, beamed at him. Ron returned the cheerful grin and returned to goal keeping. Harry, meanwhile, decided to fly a bit higher to search for the snitch. He would have usually sighted it by now, if only once.

He flew higher and higher, until the crowds below were barely the size of ants. He heard someone coughing behind him. He whirled around and saw the last person he wanted to see while flying above the clouds. Malfoy.

"So, Potter, ready to lose?"

"You wish, Malfoy," Harry retorted.

"Aww, you're not scared, are you? Dumbledore isn't here to protect you right now," Malfoy had a nasty smile playing on his face.

"Who would I need protection from, you?" Harry snorted. "Yeah, I sure am scared."

Malfoy looked offended for a second, but then said, "Potter, you know we're out of bounds…the wards are no longer protecting us here."

"Yeah, so? Get to the point Malfoy, because you're wasting my time."

"So," said a cold voice from behind him, "no one will hear your screams."

Harry turned around and saw to his horror that there were no less than 10 Death Eaters on brooms behind him. If the situation wasn't so serious, he could have laughed.

Harry quickly made to dive back to the pitch, but at that moment he was ambushed and grabbed by a many strong arms. A couple seconds later, Harry felt everything around him go black. He was being pressed very hard from all directions, he could not breathe, it felt like his body was about to explode…and then, they were gone.

Malfoy smiled maliciously to himself, and dove back down to the pitch.

Dumbledore and McGonagall, who were watching the match expectantly, sat peacefully in their seats until a red strand of sparks began shooting out of Dumbledore's wand. Dumbledore had a blank expression on his face, but then he turned pale, his eyes cold with fury.

McGonagall, who sensed something was wrong, asked, "Albus, what's wrong?"

Dumbledore looked deep into her eyes, and said, "Harry was taken out of Hogwarts grounds."

**Yay! This chapter definitely took a long time to write…I had a bit of writer's block for a while there, plus I was writing my two other stories, and reading a bunch of other fan fictions…again, I'm really sorry for how long it took to post this. But then again, you got a nice long chapter…so that kind of makes it even? Well, if you still want to throw tomatoes at me, I understand.**

**Good? Bad? Predictions? Ideas? REVIEW! **

**Click that button…You know you wanna…Everybody's doin' it ;)**


	10. Held Captive

**OMG! So I had this chapter written for like three weeks already, but somehow I forgot to post it! I feel extremely stupid.**

**Sorry for the long wait…But now that school started my updates won't be frequent. I do, however, promise to update my stories at least once a month during the school year (that is, I will be taking turns in updating 5 different stories…hopefully everything will flow).**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 10

Consciousness came back to Harry as he stirred on the cold stone floor. Understanding dawned upon him when flashes of what happened came to his mind…pain beyond anything else…laughter…and then a mist of blackness. He hoped dearly that the Order found out he was missing…but what good would it do? He himself didn't know where he was, so how in Merlin's beard was the Order supposed to find him?

He looked around. He was in a cell of some sort…but he couldn't be in Azkaban, could he?

Footsteps advanced down the stairs. Harry looked up and realized he was starting into the face of Lucius Malfoy. And then he understood. He was in Malfoy Manor.

"Rise and shine, Potter. Sleep well?" Lucius sneered.

Harry just stared in indignation.

"Oh, but you can't possibly blame me for this. You brought this on yourself. Don't tell me you didn't see this coming?"

Harry stupidly looked for his wand, but then realized that not even Crabbe and Goyle would be dumb enough to leave his wand on him.

"This is your fate, Potter. No need to fight it. Soon enough you'll be with your godfather and your precious parents."

Harry had nothing to say to this. He knew it was true.

Back at Hogwarts…

"What do you mean, Harry was taken outside of Hogwarts grounds? How is that possible? Hogwarts is supposed to be safe!" McGonagall exclaimed.

"There must have been help from within Hogwarts," Dumbledore said gravely, looking extremely pale.

"Malfoy?" McGonagall asked.

Dumbledore nodded. "I'm afraid so. It would have to be someone on one of the Quidditch teams, and no one from Gryffindor would do this. I do not want to accuse, but I am positive that it was him. I cannot do anything about it though; the important thing is to find out where Harry is."

"How would we go about that?"

Dumbledore turned around and spotted Snape. Snape came down to where Dumbledore and McGonagall were seated and looked at Dumbledore questioningly.

"Severus, it seems that Harry has been kidnapped out of Hogwarts grounds. If you are willing, I will need you to find out where he is."

Snape nodded and left the Quidditch field. He ran to the front gate, and when he was outside the apparition wards, he was gone.

Snape had a plan…he wasn't sure if it would work, but he could see no other way to do this without jeopardizing his position as a spy.

He Apparated to Malfoy Manor and looked around it for a sign of Lucius Malfoy. If possible, he wanted to avoid the encounter with Voldemort. Besides, Lucius was more likely to blurt out information than Voldemort.

"Lucius?" Snape called out.

"In the dungeons," was the distant reply.

Snape couldn't imagine what Lucius would be doing in the dungeons at such a time, but headed towards it anyways.

But when Severus Snape stepped from the last step onto the dungeon's floor, he gasped involuntarily. Harry Potter was lying in some sort of cell, beaten and pain-stricken. He seemed unconscious. Snape immediately changed tactics.

"Lucius! The Order has discovered where Potter is. I have no idea how, but they found out, they're on their way here!"

"What! How is that possible? No one even knew about his location besides Draco, Crabbe, Goyle, and of course, the Dark Lord."

"I do not know how the Order found out. I do know that they are one their way and if we don't do something our plan will fail!" Snape exclaimed, though he really had no idea what the plan was.

"Alright, I will think of a place to transfer the boy to. Try to delay those fools as much as you can."

Snape nodded and Apparated away, worry etched on his face. Harry looked terrible.

Snape appeared moments later outside Hogwarts grounds. He quickly ran to Dumbledore's office, where he knew Dumbledore would be having an Order meeting.

Without thinking, he slammed Dumbledore's door open and shouted, "Lucius Malfoy has Potter!"

"Where is he?" McGonagall asked immediately.

"Malfoy Manor. But hurry, they are moving to another hiding place. They think you already found out before I got there."

"Thank you, Severus. The Quidditch match has been cancelled until further notice, so I will need some of the Order members to supervise the students. They are currently in the Great Hall," Dumbledore said calmly. The rest of the Order nodded and left his office.

With that said, Albus Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall, Severus Snape, Molly and Arthur Weasley, Made-Eye Moody, and Kingsley Shacklebolt once again went to the rescue of Harry Potter. This time, however, they weren't sure if they would be in time.

Harry woke up on hard stone floor once more. He didn't remember why he was unconscious again, or how he had come to hurt so much. His vision was blurrier than ever and his body ached as though he had been under the Cruciatus for quite a long time. Somehow, though, he didn't think it was the Cruciatus this time.

From what he could discern of his surroundings, he was in a shed. No windows, no holes for air…just one door; a far away, most likely locked door.

Anger rose up in him. How could he have been so stupid as to let this happen? He was on a broom for heaven's sake! In Hogwarts! All he needed to do was send a Patronus to his friends, or his grandparents, or even Snape for that matter, and he would have been fine. But it was just his luck to get kidnapped by Death Eaters when no one knew where he was.

He was all of a sudden very uncomfortable. He tried to move, but then realized that there was an invisible barrier preventing him from getting up.

He blearily looked up and saw the door open. It was Lucius Malfoy with a few other Death Eaters he did not recognize.

"Well, Potter. I see you have made yourself comfortable enough."

"No thanks to you," Harry replied indignantly.

Lucius's smirk vanished. "Well good thing you found a comfortable position, because you won't be getting up any time soon. We will bring you some food shortly…but you won't be staying here too long. We'll be moving to a new location soon enough, so that the mudblood-loving fool won't be able to track us down."

"You can save your food. Don't waste it on me, because I won't eat it," Harry retorted. If he was going to die, it was going to be of defiance. He'd rather starve to death than give Voldemort the pleasure of killing him.

"You will eat, Potter, because I said so. I will not let you ruin the Dark Lord's plan because you're too stubborn and proud to do whatever you can to help yourself. The Dark Lord won't let you die that soon…he has more planned for you," Lucius said, and his smirk returned.

"Well, I really do hope I don't ruin anything for him. That would completely destroy my sense of self-control," Harry said sarcastically.

"Laugh all you want, Potter, but you won't be laughing for long. In exactly one week you will encounter the Dark Lord himself, and I can assure you won't come out of it alive…as lucky as you were the previous times."

"We'll see about that," Harry said angrily, but inwardly he thought Lucius Malfoy was right.

Malfoy snapped his fingers once, and a tray of food appeared in front of Harry. Next thing he knew, he was able to move again. Malfoy left the room and left Harry on his own.

Harry stared at the food on his tray, which didn't look edible at all. He felt as if he was doomed either way, so what was the point in eating? Eating will mean he would live longer…which would mean he would suffer longer. It didn't seem worth it.

He tried to sit up, but found that his body was still aching. He reflexively brought his hands up to his stomach when he sat up, for that was the part that was hurting the most. But when he glanced back down at his hands, he found that they were covered in blood. He was bleeding everywhere. How had he not noticed that?

It seemed as though he was attacked with the Cutting Curse several times. He was also covered in bruises, now that he noticed it, but he couldn't think of a curse he knew that would cause bruises. The only thing he knew was his uncle's fists.

When the Order arrived at Malfoy Manor, they had a plan. Snape was to go inside to inform Malfoy that the Order had arrived, as though warning the Death Eaters. A minute later, the rest of the group would conveniently walk through the doors and strike. McGonagall was to find Harry and Disapparate. Once Harry was safe at Hogwarts, the rest of the group would Disapparate.

But when they walked into a deserted looking Malfoy Manor, the plan obviously had to change.

"We're too late, Dumbledore! There's no one here, not even Narcissa Malfoy!" Moody growled. He was getting rather tired of chasing Death Eaters, but he couldn't stand to see them free.

"Albus, how are we going to track them down? They could be anywhere!" McGonagall shrieked.

"I realize that, Minerva, but there is nothing I can do in the matter. If Harry is too weak to fight, then his magical aura will be weak as well. This makes it almost impossible to trace him. But…Severus…if you are willing…I must ask you to Apparate to Lord Voldemort's side…he will undoubtedly ask you to do something for him, but he will share information with you. He trusts you. In the meantime, the rest of us will get back to the school and inform Mr. Weasley and Ms. Granger. The rest of the students will be told that Harry was injured and has to be taken to St. Mungo's. If news gets out that Harry has been kidnapped, Rita Skeeter will most likely do a wonderful job of twisting this into some kind of manipulative story," Dumbledore explained wisely.

Both McGonagall and Molly Weasley seemed ready to argue, but one look at Dumbledore's resolute face told them that there was no use. There was nothing more they could do.

Severus nodded, and Apparated away. The rest of them headed back to Hogwarts, where they knew they would be facing many frustrating questions.

When Snape appeared a moment later at the Riddle house, he was surprised at the chosen place for headquarters. The Dark Lord hated this place.

Voldemort was inside one of the second-floor rooms, along with Wormtail.

"My Lord," Snape bowed. "I have news."

"Why, Severus. Please enlighten me," Voldemort said with a cold smile.

"The muggle-loving fool found out about Potter. He is searching for him and sent me here to find out his whereabouts."

Voldemort smiled cruelly. This intimidated Severus, but not enough for him to give up.

"What shall I tell him?"

"Hmm…this changes things…indeed…the plan will need to be carried out sooner. Very well…you will tell those fools where Potter is…we will be ready for them…but first, I must ask you to do something."

"Anything, Master."

"I want you to go to Haze Field…go in the shed that is northwest of our old headquarters…you will find Potter at a considerably comfortable state, considering the circumstances. I want you to hurt him in the most painful way. You must find the most efficient curse in destroying him and weakening him as much as possible. He does not have his wand, and therefore will be helpless. I do not care what you do with him. Take advantage of him for all I care. All I ask is that it is painful."

"Yes, my Lord. Thank you, Master. I will not disappoint you," Snape answered, but he knew he should report to Dumbledore before he does any such thing.

"You will do this before you report to him, Severus. If you report to Dumbledore first, he will undoubtedly try to stop you, and I do not want them suspecting that you are not loyal to them. You are to report back to me when you have completed your job."

"Yes, Master. Right away."

And so he did what he had to do.

**Yay! So next chapter should be interesting…some very fascinating adventures await Harry. Not promising he will survive this….but I'm not saying he won't either…I guess you have something to look forward to :)**

**Please review! It really encourages me to write. Plus I like hearing what you have to say…if you have any suggestions at all, let me know. Make me happy and review :)**


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